MPs have demanded the City’s watchdog publish its full report into the Royal Bank of Scotland’s controversial business restructuring unit “without delay”.
Nicky Morgan, the chair of the Treasury Committee, has written to Andrew Bailey, chief executive of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), calling for him to hand over its findings on the lender’s troubled Global Restructuring Group (GRG).
It comes after the report was leaked to the BBC last month and revealed 92% of “viable” firms seen by GRG experienced “inappropriate action”, such as interest charges being raised or unnecessary fees imposed.
Only one in 10 made it back to the main bank, it reported.
Ms Morgan warned the leak has left the FCA with “no control over the timing or content” of further public disclosures from the so-called skilled persons’ report.
GRG was meant to help struggling business customers but it has faced allegations – denied by the bank – that it forced them into positions of financial distress in order to benefit its own position.
Image: Nicky Morgan wants the full report published ‘without delay’
The FCA said in November 2016 that a “full account” on its review of the former unit between 2008 and 2013 would be published, but has so far not made it public.
Ms Morgan said: “Nearly a year later, and nearly four years since the report was commissioned, we are still waiting for answers.
“The report itself is now in the hands of an unknown number of third parties. The FCA now has no control over the timing or content of further public disclosures from it.”
She added: “The balance has tipped firmly in favour of full publication. I have written to Mr Bailey to urge him to secure the approval of RBS to do so, without delay.”
The FCA said it would “respond in due course” to Ms Morgan’s letter.
It added it had launched an internal inquiry into the leak and had “asked the other parties who had access to the report, namely RBS and Promontory, to do the same”.
In November last year, RBS said it was setting aside £400m to compensate small business customers and was putting in place a new complaints process over GRG.
Source: Sky