Permanent role: Paul Thwaite has been acting head of Natwest since July last year
NatWest will appoint interim boss Paul Thwaite as Dame Alison Rose’s permanent replacement after she resigned in disgrace amid the Nigel Farage debanking scandal.
Directors of the state-backed lender meet today to discuss the announcement along with full-year results tomorrow.
The board has not made a final decision and other candidates have been discussed, Sky News reported. NatWest said: “We do not comment on speculation.”
Thwaite took on the top role for 12 months in July last year after leading its commercial banking division since 2019.
Rose had to resign when a scandal broke over the decision to cut ties with Farage.
Farage, a prominent Brexit supporter, claimed his account at elite bank Coutts – owned by NatWest – was closed because of his political views.
Rose resigned after admitting he made a “serious error of judgment” in informing a BBC journalist about the matter.
An internal report, published after the former politician made a public access request, said the former UKIP leader’s views did not align with the bank’s values.
But a law firm hired to investigate the scandal said in October that the decision was commercial and not based on its politics.
In November, NatWest’s board withheld more than £7.6m in share awards and bonuses from Rose but cleared her of misconduct.
NatWest has been urged to clarify plans over fears a leadership vacuum could complicate a public share sale.
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt plans to offload some of the 35 per cent stake still held by the Treasury after the 2008 government bailout.