Breakingviews - Breakingviews: Government’s NatWest meddling crosses risky line

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UK bank NatWest ditched CEO Alison Rose hours after backing her, amid pressure from its 39% state shareholder. It’s right for Rose to go. But the government’s meddling crosses a risky line, writes LiamWardProud

loadingRose is right to leave. Even though NatWest outperformed rival banks during a CEO tenure that stretched back to November 2019, her briefing of a BBC journalist left him with the impression that private-banking arm Coutts ditched Farage purely for commercial reasons. Documents subsequentlyEven so, the government might have been better off keeping quiet. Ministers’ thoughts on state-dominated banks are a delicate area.

If ministers can ignore those constraints and override the board’s judgment on the CEO, the bank’s clients might expect it to do so in other cases. Savings and deposit rates, which have risen much slower than loan rates, have gained political salience of late. Mortgage repossessions may tick up as the economy slows. Affected voters may expect the government to intervene on their behalf, similar to its actions with Farage.

Stock-market investors aren’t too worried about the politicisation of NatWest for now. Its shares fell a modest 3% on Wednesday morning – compared with 1% on average for Lloyds Banking Group

 

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