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| Royal Bank of Scotland losses more than treble to £7bn | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Royal Bank of Scotland has reported a £7bn annual loss as past problems continue to dog its performance. | Royal Bank of Scotland has reported a £7bn annual loss as past problems continue to dog its performance. |
| The deficit is more than treble 2015's loss of £2bn. It is the ninth year in a row RBS has failed to make a profit. | |
| The loss came as the bank set aside more money to deal with legal action in the US and its abandoned attempt to spin off its Williams & Glyn business. | |
| RBS plans to cut costs by £2bn over the next four years, which will mean job cuts and further branch closures. | |
| Chief executive Ross McEwan told the BBC the cost cuts were "huge, and unfortunately there will be job losses amongst that". | |
| "Branches have been closing and will continue to close. The shape of a branch is changing, and what people do in a branch is changing," he added. | |
| The bank - which is 72%-government owned - has racked up more than £50bn of losses since the £45.5bn taxpayer bailout during the financial crisis. | |
| In the bank's results statement, Mr McEwan said: "The bottom-line loss we have reported today is, of course, disappointing but, given the scale of the legacy issues we worked through in 2016, it should not come as a surprise. | |
| "These costs are a stark reminder of what happens to a bank when things go wrong and you lose focus on the customer, as this bank did before the financial crisis." | "These costs are a stark reminder of what happens to a bank when things go wrong and you lose focus on the customer, as this bank did before the financial crisis." |
| 'Good progress' | 'Good progress' |
| A big chunk of RBS's loss in 2016 - which was more than triple the previous year's loss of £2bn - was down to it setting aside £5.9bn for fines and legal costs. | A big chunk of RBS's loss in 2016 - which was more than triple the previous year's loss of £2bn - was down to it setting aside £5.9bn for fines and legal costs. |
| The US Department of Justice is pursuing the bank over the sale of mortgage-backed securities prior to the 2008 financial crisis. | The US Department of Justice is pursuing the bank over the sale of mortgage-backed securities prior to the 2008 financial crisis. |
| RBS has also had to cover legal costs associated with payment protection insurance (PPI) mis-selling. | RBS has also had to cover legal costs associated with payment protection insurance (PPI) mis-selling. |
| However, Mr McEwan said he expected RBS to return to profit by the end of 2018, and pointed out that when one-off charges were stripped out, the core business of the bank was making money. | However, Mr McEwan said he expected RBS to return to profit by the end of 2018, and pointed out that when one-off charges were stripped out, the core business of the bank was making money. |
| "We made good progress throughout 2016 against our strategy. Our core business generated £4.2bn in adjusted pre-tax operating profit for the year," he said. | "We made good progress throughout 2016 against our strategy. Our core business generated £4.2bn in adjusted pre-tax operating profit for the year," he said. |
| "This bank has great potential. We believe that by going further on cost reduction and faster on digital transformation we will deliver a simpler, safer and even more customer-focused bank." | "This bank has great potential. We believe that by going further on cost reduction and faster on digital transformation we will deliver a simpler, safer and even more customer-focused bank." |