Royal Bank of Scotland deliberately drove small businesses to collapse

The Royal Bank of Scotland has hired a law firm to investigate allegations the bank deliberately drove small businesses to collapse for its own gain.

The claims are contained in a dossier, compiled by government adviser Lawrence Tomlinson, which has now been passed to City regulators by Business Secretary Vince Cable, as Sky News revealed at the weekend.

The report suggests RBS - the largest lender in the UK to small firms - drove businesses to collapse so it could buy back their assets at rock-bottom prices.

Chancellor George Osborne has described the allegations as "shocking", but small business campaigners say anecdotal evidence suggests the practice was widespread.

The Royal Bank of Scotland deliberately drove small businesses to collapse

It is 80% owned by the taxpayer, basically they have used any excuse to make small businesses default so they can buy their assets at rock bottom prices.

But the report alleges that firms not necessarily in immediate financial distress are "engineered" into GRG, sometimes through small technical breaches of loan terms, such as late filing of minor financial information. They are then hit with exorbitant rates and fees, which in some cases cause them to collapse, allowing RBS to buy their property and assets on the cheap for the benefit of its West Register property arm, according to Mr Tomlinson.

One business that submitted evidence to Mr Tomlinson said that it forked out £256,000 in fees alone while in GRG. Another said that RBS made them pay an immediate sum of £40,000 to continue borrowing terms with the group.

Absolute scumbags, loan sharks wouldnt get away with this. Someone needs to go down and be made an example of. I wont be holding my breath.

reply to post by Horus12

The Royal Bank of Scotland has hired a law firm to investigate allegations the bank deliberately drove small businesses to collapse for its own gain.

Does anyone believe the law firm is being hired to "investigate" is going to do anything but try to protect the bank? I sure don't.

The way it was written in the article it makes it look like RBS is trying to get to the bottom of this heinous issue. Yeah right, this is an attempt by them to preempt the damage.

These huge banks have proven again and again that they are enemies of humanity. They need to be dismantled but that's never going to happen.

I find it extremely disturbing that even so called enlightened people seem to be off track with understanding exactly what is and has been going on. Isn't it obvious they're trying to get rid of the middle class world wide? The recessions will come and go and with every wave the middle class will be reduced, the banks will keep hiking their interest rates to a point where people will be born into debt. This will trigger the third world war, fought between the people and the system.

Do you actually think we can start from the bottom independently and end up with hundreds of millions of dollars? You have to be part of ________, to do that (Fill in the blank). If you're not with them then $10 million is nothing and you'd still be considered upper middle class and your income will gradually decrease. Just wait and watch it play out right in front of your eyes!

Accept the world for what it is and stop trying to water down the system in order to make yourself feel better.

only RBS ?????????
guess most banks practice such behaviours... just an tip of the veil exposed

ressiv
only RBS ?????????
guess most banks practice such behaviours... just an tip of the veil exposed

Exactly my view too....RBS being the scape goat for the other high street banks who are even worse....Barclays anyone?....They are being front lined to divert from 'the others'. A bit like telling us the people..."look at this, you bailed out this bank and look what they are doing to you", and rubbing our noses in it. More to this than meets the eye me thinks.
Rainbows
Jane

Sickening! And yes I agree I am sure it is not just RBS up to these dirty tricks. It beggars belief that these people can just go around destroying peoples lives for their own gain and not give a toss, do these people have no soul? How do they live with themselves?

And I assume there will be a public enquiry, if not why the hell are RBS being allowed to investigate themselves? What will it take for unscrupulous bankers to be held accountable for their actions?

I have a small business and have never taken out a loan and on hearing this probably never will, shame as I would need a loan to grow. In fact, on reading this I don't even want to use a bank but I have no option.

reply to post by Scouse100


Think outside the box.
It's circumstances like this that make us the 'mother of invention'.

Rainbows
Jane

So basically, the taxpayer, being majority owner, gets to hire this "law firm" - probably at a nice exhorbitant rate (be interesting to know who they are) - to investigate RBS? Anyone willing to betis investigation will run a while and cost the taxpayer, as majority owner, an arm and a leg and do little if anything of any value. Even if shown to be completely true, does anyone expect any bank execs will face prosecution and jail time? Of course not, it'll be another "so sorry, won't happen again, lessons have been learned" then off to the club for a large one!

See, banks don't have to admit guilt in any of these crimes like an ordinary fraudster conning Granny out of her savings would, they have government issued immunity, which is why they got bailed out in the first place. The bailouts were NOT there to protect the money of you or I, but to protect the large dodgy investments and get-rich-quick schemes that ultimately backfired due to their criminal nature. That's why the bailout funds almost exclusively went to the BIG investors and other banks first, and we got saddled with the debt thanks to our owned politicians.

Scouse100
And I assume there will be a public enquiry, if not why the hell are RBS being allowed to investigate themselves? What will it take for unscrupulous bankers to be held accountable for their actions?

RBS aren't investigating themselves (or if they are, that's their own prerogative) but rather the newly formed FCA has just been handed a file by the Business Secretary, so they will investigate.

Mr. Confusion back for a second helping.

Will somebody tell me where I'm getting this wrong?

RBS is 80% taxpayer owned, which means in any practical sense, it's government owned.

Therefore the government controls the board of directors and management decisions.

The (government) Bank is being charged with practices which damage small businesses and benefit the government.

In the US we do that without bothering to set up a bank.

This has been standard practice for ages. All the big banks have shares in the private central banking scheme based in switzerland. Bank of International Settlements oversees each private central bank of each nation.

All the big commercial banks and private central banks have the goal of consolidating assets away from the upper middle class into the top tier. Make small and medium business go insolvent so that they have to sell at fire sale price or loose everything.

The purpose of recessions is to force the weak out of business. Its all a well designed pyramid scheme!

Investigation? Sure slap a fine and then forget about it.

ressiv
only RBS ?????????
guess most banks practice such behaviours... just an tip of the veil exposed

Quoted for truth.

Just story after story of banking (former banker here btw) that its end result is to hoard its money/spread its influence.

C'mon, look at what ole J P did in NYC to consolidate his power via the newspapers (that he owned).

How much is enough is what we'd ask them, and they'd reply "once we have it all it will be enough".

Derek