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NatWest Group is to scrap the bulk of a possible £10m-plus payout to Dame Alison Rose, its former chief executive, as it tries to draw a line under the debanking row sparked by the closure of Nigel Farage’s Coutts accounts.
Sky News has learnt that the board of NatWest, which is just under 40% owned by British taxpayers, has decided not to pay most of the discretionary elements of Dame Alison’s pay package.
A source close to the bank said the NatWest board’s decision was expected to be announced to the London Stock Exchange on Friday.
While the precise numbers were unclear on Thursday evening, it had been expected that NatWest would adopt a hard line towards its former chief, who stepped down in late July after admitting that she discussed the former UKIP leader’s banking arrangements with a BBC journalist.
The NatWest board’s decision means that Dame Alison will forfeit millions of pounds in unvested share awards, although she is expected to receive a seven-figure sum in the form of her basic salary and fixed share allowance.
Dame Alison’s contract, which incorporated a 12-month notice period, stipulated that she would receive an annual salary of £1.16m, with a further sum of the same amount in deferred share awards.
Her legal fees are also expected to be paid by the bank.
Dame Alison had accrued unvested share awards worth roughly £5m, most of which had been awarded since she became chief executive in 2019.
This week, the Information Commissioner’s Office was forced to make a grovelling apology to Dame Alison after it claimed she had broken privacy laws – an apology which prompted a furious response from Mr Farage.
It emerged following a subject access request by Mr Farage that NatWest employees had belittled the broadcaster and former politician, making a stream of pejorative comments about his views and finances.
Read more:
Nigel Farage and NatWest: A timeline of what happened
Key points from Coutts’ dossier on Farage
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