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Wan LixinOpinion deputy editor of Shanghai Daily
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RBS unveils restructuring plan
By Jane Waredll |
February 27, 2009, Friday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
THE Royal Bank of Scotland posted an annual loss of 24.14 billion pounds (US$34.4 billion) - the biggest in British corporate history - and unveiled a massive restructuring plan yesterday that will offload many of its international businesses.
The already part-nationalized bank also said it will dump 325 billion pounds of toxic assets into a government insurance program, a step that could result in the state increasing its stake to as high as 95 percent.
RBS Chairman Philip Hampton blamed the massive 2008 loss, which compared with a 7.3-billion-pound profit in 2007, on the "unprecedented turbulence" in financial markets and deteriorating conditions around the world.
The bank's revenue fell 15 percent to 25.87 billion pounds.
RBS Chief Executive Stephen Hester, who replaced Fred Goodwin after he resigned in the wake of the bank's financial downfall, refused to make forecasts for the current "difficult" year but said he was confident the restructuring and the government assistance would return RBS to "standalone strength."
The bank said it planned to shift 240 billion pounds, or 20 percent, of its funded assets to a non-core division. Those assets will then be disposed of or run down over the next three to five years.
Hester said the designated "bad" assets would be culled from a range of regions and businesses, but the bulk would come from the bank's underperforming Global Banking and Markets division.
The restructuring, which includes plans to cut more than 2.5 billion pounds from the bank's cost base, will leave the bank centered on Britain, with smaller, more focused global operations.
The already part-nationalized bank also said it will dump 325 billion pounds of toxic assets into a government insurance program, a step that could result in the state increasing its stake to as high as 95 percent.
RBS Chairman Philip Hampton blamed the massive 2008 loss, which compared with a 7.3-billion-pound profit in 2007, on the "unprecedented turbulence" in financial markets and deteriorating conditions around the world.
The bank's revenue fell 15 percent to 25.87 billion pounds.
RBS Chief Executive Stephen Hester, who replaced Fred Goodwin after he resigned in the wake of the bank's financial downfall, refused to make forecasts for the current "difficult" year but said he was confident the restructuring and the government assistance would return RBS to "standalone strength."
The bank said it planned to shift 240 billion pounds, or 20 percent, of its funded assets to a non-core division. Those assets will then be disposed of or run down over the next three to five years.
Hester said the designated "bad" assets would be culled from a range of regions and businesses, but the bulk would come from the bank's underperforming Global Banking and Markets division.
The restructuring, which includes plans to cut more than 2.5 billion pounds from the bank's cost base, will leave the bank centered on Britain, with smaller, more focused global operations.
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