Royal Bank of Scotland to drop historic group name next week

Royal Bank of Scotland has confirmed that its parent company name will change to NatWest Group next Wednesday.

The Royal Bank of Scotland HQ at Gogarburn in Edinburgh. Picture: Ian Georgeson

The lender first announced its intention to change its name in February stressing that there would be no change to its customer-facing brands, with branches in Scotland continuing to operate under the Royal Bank of Scotland banner.

At the time, RBS, which has existed since 1727, said the name change would have no direct impact on jobs while the registered office would remain in Edinburgh.

The bank, which is led by chief executive Alison Rose, pointed out that 80 per cent of its customer base now falls under the NatWest remit.

In a stock market update, RBS said that the change of name is intended to take effect on 22 July, subject to registration of the change at Companies House in Edinburgh. A follow-up announcement will be made when the name change becomes effective, which will also provide an update regarding trading under RBS’s revised stock exchange tickers.

At the time of February’s announcement, RBS chairman Sir Howard Davies said: “The board has decided that it is the right time to align the parent name with the brand under which the great majority of our business is delivered.

“Customers will see no change to products or services as a result of this change and will continue to be served through the brands they recognise today.”

The group also posted an operating profit before tax of £4.2 billion for 2019.

RBS remains majority-owned by the taxpayer more than a decade since the financial crisis. It became one of the biggest banks in the world through an aggressive acquisition trail masterminded by Fred Goodwin but this unravelled in the financial crisis when it was forced to turn to the UK government for a bailout.

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

The dramatic events of 2020 are having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive. We are now more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription to support our journalism.

Subscribe to scotsman.com and enjoy unlimited access to Scottish news and information online and on our app. Visit https://www.scotsman.com/subscriptions now to sign up.

By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.

Joy Yates

Editorial Director