EU approves RBS competition plan, solving Williams and Glyn sell-off quandary
The forced sale by the Royal Bank of Scotland of its Williams and Glyn brand will not go ahead, ending eight years of uncertainty.
W&G has been up for sale since 2009 as part of the terms imposed by the European Commission in return for approving the UK Government’s £4.5bn bailout in 2008.
The sale of the brand was designed to stimulate competition, enticing a greater number of customers to bank with smaller rivals.
During the near nine-year period W&G has been on the market RBS has not been able to find an “appropriate buyer” for the brand.
Now, instead of selling W&G, RBS will spend £833m on paying business customers to switch their accounts to competitors to fuel rivals’ growth aspirations, having received final approval for the alternative plan from the European Commission.
Ross McEwan, RBS chief executive, said: “This allows us to resolve our final State Aid divestment obligation and brings welcome clarity for our customers and staff.
“It also builds on the progress we have made already this year in resolving our major legacy issues through reaching a settlement with the Federal Housing Finance Agency, and resolving the 2008 Rights Issue litigation. We remain committed to resolving our last remaining major legacy issue, the investigation into our historic US RMBS activities.”
RBS said the costs of the package were covered by provisions it has already taken.
