
How can it have come to this?
Just eight months ago NatWest was sailing serenely back to the calm waters of banking respectability after the years of turmoil following its emergency nationalisation during the financial crisis. Its then highly regarded chief executive, Dame Alison Rose, revealed that profits in 2022 were up by a third to £5.1 billion, while she was rewarded with the first bonus for a NatWest CEO since 2008, taking her total remuneration to £5.25 million.