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The independent review into the closure of Nigel Farage’s Coutts account and the discussion of his banking with a journalist by the head of the bank has found “a number of shortcomings” in the closure process.
But law firm Travers Smith, who were commissioned by the board of NatWest to conduct the review, said the closure of Mr Farage‘s account, “was predominantly a commercial decision”.
“Coutts considered its relationship with Mr Farage to be commercially unviable because it was significantly loss-making.”
In response to the key findings of the report, NatWest chairman, Sir Howard Davies, said “a number of serious failings” were set out in the treatment of Mr Farage.
Shortcomings were also identified in how NatWest, which owns Coutts, communicated with the former UKIP and Brexit Party leader and how it treated his confidential information, according to the review.
The finance watchdog, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said potential “regulatory breaches and a number of areas for improvement” were identified.
These include NatWest’s processes on how it considers potential accounts closures and customers complaints as well as the effectiveness of governance mechanisms.
NatWest’s share price fell to more than a two year low on Friday morning despite just published results showing £1.33bn in profit over the three months ending in September, 23% higher than at the same point a year before.
On market open a NatWest share cost 173 pence, a low not seen since February 2021.
The share price fall, from 205.2 pence on Thursday evening, was the biggest fall since the 2016 Brexit vote.
Former chief executive, Dame Alison Rose, exited the state-backed lender after she admitted making a “serious error of judgment” by speaking to a journalist about Farage’s banking at Coutts.
After the news piece was published Mr Farage released the content of a subject access request, which suggested the move was taken partly because his views did…
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