FCA refuses to publish leaked RBS report

Britain’s financial watchdog has refused to publish a leaked report into the scandal at Royal Bank of Scotland’s controversial restructuring unit, despite demands for its release by an influential committee of MPS.

Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) chief executive Andrew Bailey pushed back after receiving a letter last week from Tory MP and Treasury committee chair Nicky Morgan, who raised concerns about a leak to the BBC last month and called for the report to be published in full.

But Bailey said that publishing the skilled persons or Section 166 review – which collects insight about a firm’s activities from third parties – would mean revealing confidential information about the individuals who contributed to it.

“However, I recognise that the public interest justifies greater disclosure of material in the report relevant to the complaints of former customers. It is therefore our intention to publish a detailed summary,” he said.

Bailey said the FCA has asked external lawyers to ensure the summary is a “fair and balanced” account of the report’s findings, adding that the report is nearly ready for publication. The FCA also has yet to decide whether the case requires a formal investigation.

Bailey’s offer falls short of Morgan’s demands, which echoed calls by the SME Alliance and lawyers suing RBS on behalf of businesses affected by the scandal, which allegedly saw RBS’ turnaround unit GRG intentionally push businesses towards failure. 0 Andrew Bailey heads the FCA as its chief executive