Finance
NatWest Boss Brought Down by Sunak After-Hours Intervention
- UK government put pressure on NatWest to get rid of CEO
- Controversy sparked by closure of Nigel Farage’s bank accounts
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NatWest Group Plc’s board thought they could douse the political firestorm that has engulfed the bank for the better part of a month. But they forgot to account for the most important shareholder: the UK government.
Just hours after the bank expressed full confidence in chief executive Alison Rose, aides to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt began to spread the word that she had to go. Officials told reporters that the government had significant concerns about Rose staying on after she admitted leaking information about the closure of accounts held by Brexit-campaigner Nigel Farage.