NatWest must hire a new director as the government prepares to sell part of its 35% stake
Caretaker: Paul Thwaite was appointed interim boss of NatWest last July
Natwest has been urged to provide “clarity” over its next CEO ahead of a public share sale, which could take place as early as June.
The state-backed lender is led by Paul Thwaite, who was appointed as interim boss last July for a 12-month term after Dame Alison Rose was forced to resign following a debanking scandal involving former UKIP leader Nigel Farage.
The bank is looking for a permanent successor for Rose.
But that could complicate the timing of an 1980s-style share sale that Chancellor Jeremy Hunt is planning as the Treasury tries to get some of the 35 percent of the bank it still owns from the to do by hand.
Charles Donald, chief executive of UK Government Investments (UKGI), the government body that oversees the taxpayer’s stake in the lender, told MPs that Natwest had yet to make ‘any statement to the market about how they are moving forward with the process’. a boss.
Donald was asked by Treasury Committee chairwoman Harriett Baldwin whether it would be “very difficult” to launch the sale without a permanent boss.
“They need to provide clarity to the market on their proposals around confirming the interim CEO or a process around appointing a permanent CEO so that the market feels comfortable, yes,” he said.
Holger Vieten, director at UKGI, said the share sale “could potentially take place” in June.
It will be the latest episode in the government’s attempts to sell its stake in Natwest – formerly Royal Bank of Scotland – following its £45 billion bailout in the 2008 financial crisis.