RBS mulls sale of Williams & Glyn and NatWest
Royal Bank of Scotland's advisers are reportedly weighing a shock move to divest both Williams & Glyn and NatWest, as the bank seeks to accelerate sell-off plans.
According to the Sunday Telegraph, RBS advisers, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Robey Warshaw, are weighing the NatWest move in a bid to ease tech problems behind the Williams & Glyn spin off.
RBS is required to sell off branches as part of the conditions around its bailout, but warned in late April of a “significant risk” that it would be unable to complete the divestment process by the end of 2017.
At the time, the bank said that creating a new technology platform for Williams & Glyn remained challenging, and suggesting it would seek alternatives around divestment.
But now, RBS' advisers are reportedly floating a larger sell-off, with Williams & Glyn able to use NatWest's existing systems.
Other alternatives being explored include allowing the challenger bank to continue to use RBS systems, in a manner similar to that employed by TSB following its separation from Lloyds.
RBS could not be reached for comment.