• Bank makes fifth consecutive annual loss since state takeover in 2008
  • RBS - which is 82% owned by state - blames poor results on one-off costs
  • Pays out more than £600million in bonuses despite losing money
  • Share price fell by 5% after announcement of yet another loss
  • CEO Stephen Hester says bank could be privatised 'in a couple of years'
  • But taxpayer might never recoup investment, says chair Philip Ham

The Royal Bank of Scotland racked up a loss of £5.16billion last year, it announced this morning. RBS has made a loss for five consecutive years, ever since it was largely taken into public ownership in 2008 during the global economic crisis. The state-owned bank blamed the pre-tax loss - which caused its shares to tumble by five per cent - on one-off expenses such as fines, and claimed it had made an operating profit of £3.5billion......Read more here
Despite making another loss in 2012, the bank paid out around £607million in bonuses to its employees.

Just a few to maul or browse over:

'PPI passed the smell test': Bank bosses in denial over huge mis-selling scandal - allaboutFORUMS

'Double strike’ fear for RBS over Libor fines - allaboutFORUMS
Too many lunch, hotel meetings i assume:
RBS sale of 318 branches to Santander collapses - allaboutFORUMS

RBS leaves government's toxic asset insurance scheme - allaboutFORUMS