NatWest is expected to scrap most of a potentially £10m-plus payout to Alison Rose, the banking group's former chief executive, who was forced to resign over a scandal linked to the closure of Nigel Farage's bank accounts.
The board of NatWest is poised to announce that it will not pay most of the discretionary elements of Rose’s remuneration package that are linked to performance, in an attempt to draw a line under the controversy. The taxpayer still owns almost 40% of NatWest, 15 years after it was bailed out by the UK government during the financial crisis.
Rose, who received a £5.2m pay package last year, was forced to resign in July over a leak to a BBC news journalist about the threatened closure of Nigel Farage’s bank accounts.
Rose is still expected to receive a pay package of about £2.4m – comprised a £1.16m basic salary as well as a deferred share award, benefits and pension payments – but will be forced to forfeit millions in as yet unvested share awards, according to Sky News.
Earlier this week, the UK’s data watchdog issued a formal apology to Rose, saying it was “incorrect” to suggest she had breached data protection laws by discussing Farage’s banking relationship with a BBC journalist.
The Information Commissioner’s Office appeared to backpedal on findings released last month, which originally suggested Rose had broken rules by confirming the former Ukip leader had accounts with the NatWest-owned private bank Coutts, and misleading a journalist over why it planned to close them.
This article was written by Mark Sweney from The Guardian and was legally licensed through the Industry Dive Content Marketplace. Please direct all licensing questions to legal@industrydive.com.