The former UKIP leader said he was excluded as a Coutts client because of his political views. Photo: Julian Simmonds
Nigel Farage has described the latest review into Coutts' decision to close his bank accounts as a “fiction” after finding no evidence of widespread political discrimination.
NatWest-owned Coutts said the second phase of an independent review by law firm Travers Smith into customer account closures over the past two years found that none were closed because of a customer's political views or party affiliation. . /p>
However, the audit found that the bank may have violated city supervisory rules by not informing customers that their accounts were being closed.
Financial Conduct Authority rules require that customers be treated fairly. . The report said the bank may have broken rules by failing to report its withdrawal.
Mr Farage said: “The Travers Smith report is a work of fiction. The contents of the documents disclosed by the bank have nothing to do with the actual reason for closing my account. However, the report acknowledges that there are serious shortcomings in the way NatWest closes bank accounts in such a subjective manner. NatWest now needs to take a hard look at its own procedures.
“Travers Smith never spoke to me, which I find strange. They criticize the closure of NatWest accounts and the lack of due process, but the idea that they found no evidence of political bias is laughable.
“All they had to do was read my request for access to subject. Of course they should publish all of this. I have no confidence in this company.”
NatWest ordered the review following the Nigel Farage debanking scandal, in which the former UKIP leader said he was excluded as a Coutts client because of his political views.
The scandal ultimately led to the resignation of Alison Rose, chief executive of NatWest.
Travers Smith handled 84 customer account closures, or 65 cases, over a two-year period ending in July 2023. This is a sample of about 10% of the 897 closures during the period that could be subject to review. According to Travers Smith, of the 65 cases reviewed, about one in five may have been in violation of the rules.
Despite the lack of evidence that clients were removed because of their political views, the review said the lack of written guidance created There is too much discretion for private bankers and Coutts' internal reputational risk committee to decide who to exclude as clients.
Travers Smith also found that Coutts had no formal process for determining how customers who could be removed were identified.
They said these processes could be improved with NatWest's help and there was a risk to customers with low cost. they may be treated differently than others due to a lack of official guidance.
The review also found that two clients were removed because they did not meet NatWest's “purpose”, although the reasons were not related to political views and did not breach standards, Travers found.
In a small number of cases, the report states that the customer was not given 60 days' notice of account closure, potentially violating the Payment Services Rules.
Coutts may also have breached FCA rules by failing to clearly inform customers that they were being removed.
The first phase of the review, published in October, concluded there was no evidence Mr Farage's position on Brexit or his political views were factors in Coutts' decision to strip him of his bank accounts.
Jeremy Hunt, the chancellor, has vowed to tighten banking rules to ensure customers don't have their accounts closed simply because they disagree with their political views.
NatWest said the bank would strengthen its debanking standards following the findings.< /p>
Mohammad Syed, chief executive of Coutts, said: “This report confirms that there were a number of shortcomings in our approach to closing accounts at Coutts and, in particular, in the quality and consistency of our communications.
“Some of our customers' experiences have not met their expectations and we apologize to them.”
“We are committed to implementing all of Travers Smith's recommendations, including comprehensively reviewing and updating our logout and communication processes to ensure the best possible and a more consistent experience for all our customers.”
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