"RBS faces possible criminal investigation"

[WhiskeyGirl]

Serious Fraud Office is considering the possibility of launching a criminal investigation into allegations that Royal Bank of Scotland mistreated struggling small businesses

The Serious Fraud Office is considering a criminal investigation into allegations of wrongdoing at the Royal Bank of Scotland’s global restructuring group, after claims the lender was forcing small companies out of business.

The SFO is in the early stages of assessing whether there was any criminal activity and has not yet progressed to a full investigation, reports the Financial Times.

RBS has been accused by government adviser Lawrence Tomlinson of pushing struggling small firms into its "turnaround" unit, so it could charge higher fees and interest, and take control of their assets.

read more here - http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/banksandfinance/10477204/RBS-faces-possible-criminal-investigation.html

I wonder how many US banks and small businesses in the US may have been affected in the US by similar practices?

Stress tests?  How many bank assets were sold for pennies to cronies? 

[WhiskeyGirl]

Royal Bank of Scotland faces claims of 'killing off' small firms

Business Secretary passes "serious allegation" about role of RBS's business turnaround unit to financial regulators

Royal Bank of Scotland is facing calls for an investigation into controversial practices by its turnaround unit following allegations that good companies have been forced out of business for the taxpayer-backed lender’s profit.

Vince Cable, the Business Secretary, has passed on a dossier to the City regulators containing a series of complaints against RBS and its global restructuring group (GRG). The division handles loans classed as being risky and is understood to have the power to scrap loan deals, impose inflated interest rates and charge hefty penalties.

The report, detailing a series of allegations against the bank, was compiled by millionaire businessman Lawrence Tomlinson and will be published today following several months of investigation. Mr Tomlinson is currently employed as the “entrepreneur in residence” at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

“Some of these allegations are very serious and I am waiting for an urgent response as to what actions have been taken,” said Mr Cable, who has referred the report to the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority.

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 high 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, it is alleged.

read more here - http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/banksandfinance/10471671/Royal-Bank-of-Scotland-faces-claims-of-killing-off-small-firms.html

[WhiskeyGirl]

He said one company alone had calculated that it had faced extra payments worth £256,000 because it had been passed from local management by RBS to its Global Restructuring Group.

However, Mr Tomlinson’s most damaging claim was that the Edinburgh-based bank was deliberately undervaluing assets to force companies into difficulty and then using its West Register unit to buy property up at a discounted price. The RBS offshoot purchases problem properties from the mother bank, and is said to holds assets valued at more than £3 billion.

Mr Tomlinson has complained in the past of RBS trying to do the same to his company, the LNT Group.

He pointed out that RBS and Lloyds control 65 per cent of the small and medium enterprise (SME) loan market and said the only solution was to break them up into six banks with around 10 per cent of market share each.

He warned that if the two are put back into full private ownership in their current state, the British banking market will be returning to its 2003 shape, which led to the 2008 crash.

read more here - http://www.scotsman.com/news/uk/rbs-division-accused-of-ruining-firms-for-assets-1-3208338

Maybe the US should have competing currencies?  End the Federal Reserve?