RBS Pondering Sale Of Coutts' Overseas Operations - Report

Tom Burroughes

18 July 2014

A newspaper report that UK-listed in the Netherlands, were obliged to sell non-domestic assets as a condition of receiving state aid, but this may not apply to Coutts.

The FT report noted that Coutts is being integrated with RBS's UK commercial lending division as part of a strategic overhaul. Alison Rose, head of the new commercial and private banking division, is leading the review and is expected to announce her strategy for the business at an investor day as early as September this year.

The wealth arm makes up 6 per cent of RBS's 2013 revenues. The international arm has clients in Asia, the Middle East and Europe, with offices in Hong Kong, Singapore, Abu Dhabi, Qatar, Dubai, Geneva, Zurich and Monaco.

Last year, this publication worked with Coutts on a major report exploring how private banks can better serve the large independent wealth management market in Switzerland.