NatWest announces huge surge in profits as beleaguered bosses meet shareholders for first time since Farage row
An image of a NatWest branch
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NatWest has announced a huge surge in profits as bank bosses prepare to meet shareholders for the first time since the explosive row about Nigel Farage's Coutts accounts.
The bank revealed pre-tax profits of £3.6billion, up from the £2.6bn achieved in the same period last year.
The figure is also above the £3.3billion target set out by expert forecasts.
NatWest also announced an interim dividend of 5.5 pence per share and announced a share buyback of up to £500million for the second half of the year.
Former Ukip leader Nigel Farage in his local village near Westerham, Kent
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The interim dividend will hand the Government, which owns a 38 per cent stake in the bank, £190million in September.
Katie Murray, NatWest's chief financial officer, said: “NatWest Group’s strong performance for the first half of the year is underpinned by our robust balance sheet, with a well-diversified loan book, robust liquidity and stable deposit base.
“As a result, we are able to continue lending to our customers and delivering sustainable returns and distributions to our shareholders, even in the current uncertain environment.
“Although arrears remain low, we know that people, families and businesses are anxious about their finances and many are really struggling.
"We are being proactive in our support for those who are hardest hit, helping to build the financial resilience of the customers and communities we serve.”
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A general view of Coutts on the Strand, central London
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Despite positive financial news for the first half of 2023, NatWest's share price plummeted on Wednesday after chief executive Dame Alison Rose quit over leaking Farage's banking information to the BBC.
The London Stock Exchange revealed prices closed at 239.9 yesterday, down from 252.5 on Monday.
News about NatWest's financial situation also comes as its beleaguered bosses prepare to meet shareholders for the first time since the group suffered a double resignation over Farage's debanking debacle.
Dame Alison quit on Wednesday after NatWest's board faced mounting pressure from the Government.
Dame Alison RosePACoutts chief executive Peter Flavel followed her out the door yesterday, saying: "In the handling of Mr Farage’s case we have fallen below the bank’s high standards of personal service."
Farage called for other members of NatWest's top team to face the chop, with some calling for chairman Sir Howard Davies to quit.
NatWest is now also facing an investigation into whether it broke data protection laws over the debacle.
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) said Farage’s trust had been “betrayed” by the bank.
A NatWest bank in Spinningfield in Manchester
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John Edwards, the information commissioner, said on Wednesday: “The banking duty of confidentiality is over a hundred years old, and it is clear that it would not permit the discussion of a customer’s personal information with the media.
“We trust banks with our money and with our personal information.
“Any suggestion that this trust has been betrayed will be concerning for a bank’s customers, and for regulators like myself.”
The ICO is more likely to slap NatWest with a civil penalty rather than bring criminal prosecutions, sources have told The Telegraph.