Coutts CEO Resigns After Farage Saga

Tom Burroughes

27 July 2023

Peter Flavel, who has been CEO of , handled the “de-banking” of former UKIP leader, and broadcaster, Nigel Farage.

Flavel, who joined as private banking head of the old Royal Bank of Scotland business (now NatWest) in 2016, said in a statement today: “As CEO of Coutts it is right that I bear ultimate responsibility for this, which is why I am stepping down.”

The banking and political world has been roiled by the drama, which started more than two weeks ago, of how Farage complained he had been “de-banked” by Coutts without much of an explanation. The former CEO of NatWest, Alison Rose – who resigned yesterday – had discussed Farage's account with a BBC journalist, and a story was run saying he hadn’t sufficient wealth to any longer justify being a Coutts client, and had been offered an alternative NatWest account.

However, a 40-page report - sent to Farage who had requested it, and later published in the Daily Telegraph - revealed that his political views, such as on Brexit, LGBTQ and other issues, were factors in his removal from the account. Rose was criticised for crossing a line of confidentiality – for which she apologised. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak warned of threats to free speech. The UK government owns a 38.6 per cent stake in NatWest, stemming from when RBS was bailed out by taxpayers in the 2008 financial crash.

Farage had called for Rose, Flavel and NatWest chairman Howard Davies to quit.

Flavel, who joined after careers at JP Morgan in Asia and Standard Chartered, has been the head of Coutts during a period that saw the fortunes of Coutts revive. The bank is due to published its latest financial results tomorrow morning.

"I am exceptionally proud of my seven years at Coutts and I want to thank the team that have built it into such a high performing business. In the handling of Mr Farage’s case we have fallen below the bank’s high standards of personal service,” he said in his statement.

Paul Thwaite, NatWest Group CEO, said: “I have agreed with Peter Flavel that he will step down as Coutts CEO and CEO of our Wealth Businesses by mutual consent with immediate effect. Whilst I will be personally sorry to lose Peter as a colleague, I believe this is the right decision for Coutts and the wider group. I have asked Mohammad Kamal Syed to step into the role of interim CEO of Coutts and our wealth businesses. Mo has extensive wealth management experience and is the ideal person to lead Coutts through this difficult time as we begin the search for Peter's replacement.”