The troubled Co-operative Bank has reported a pre-tax loss of £75.8m for the first half of 2014, down from £845m a year ago.
It has also cut staff numbers by 13% in the first six months of the year. The bank was rescued in 2013 after discovering a £1.5bn capital shortfall. "Considering the scale of the challenge we faced a year ago we are encouraged by the progress made to ensure the stability of the bank," said chief executive Niall Booker. After the discovery of the capital black hole, a deal was reached which saw the wider Co-op Group cede majority ownership of the bank to bondholders, including a number of US hedge funds. Last year, before the bank rescue, it was hit by a separate scandal when its chairman Paul Flowers was arrested in connection with a drugs supply investigation.....Read more here