Royal Bank of Scotland upbeat over profits despite credit crunch
NatWest parent Royal Bank of Scotland today revealed write-downs of £1.5bn (€2.8bn) from the US sub-prime mortgage crisis, but said profits were set to beat expectations.
The group said it hoped full-year operating profits would come in “well ahead” of market forecasts, despite suffering write-downs of £1.2bn (€1.6bn) and a further £300m (€416m) at its recently acquired ABN Amro business.
RBS was able to offset £250m (€347m) of losses amid the credit turmoil by using its own cash reserves instead of turning to more expensive wholesale credit markets.
It also revealed today that second-half deposits had soared amid Northern Rock’s high-profile problems as savers quit the troubled bank.
