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- Bank will today admit that global restructuring group made mistakes
- Small-business owners claim the bank deliberately drove their companies to the wall to seize their assets
- RBS will deny allegations it sought to profit from their suffering
- But it will acknowledge some company owners are entitled to a payout
Thousands of small-business owners are finally set to get compensation over claims their firms were destroyed by RBS. The bank will today admit that mistakes were made by its infamous global restructuring group – an operation which was meant to be a crack rescue unit for struggling companies during the recession. Small-business owners claim the bank deliberately drove their companies to the wall to seize their assets and shore up its ailing balance sheet. he taxpayer-backed lender will deny allegations it sought to profit from their suffering, but it will at last acknowledge that some company owners are entitled to a payout.
The decision – due to be announced this morning before markets open – is likely to be welcomed by entrepreneurs who saw their livelihoods, homes and marriages destroyed as their businesses went bust. Hotel firms, a student accommodation company and a pharmacy chain were all allegedly pushed into administration by the bank. RBS chief executive Ross McEwan has already admitted that the bank, which owns NatWest, made mistakes. It follows years of criticism which were first met with a staunch defence from the lender – even though as far back as 2009, City bankers were saying they would ‘take the keys’ of properties if they could not get their money back during the financial crisis.....Read more here