NatWest Group traces its roots to the Royal Bank of Scotland, chartered in Edinburgh in 1727, and to National Westminster Bank, formed in 1968. RBS bought the larger NatWest in a hostile ~$27.7 billion (£21 billion) bid in 2000 and, under CEO Fred Goodwin, grew quickly through acquisitions.
ABN AMRO and the 2008 rescue
In 2007 RBS led a consortium that bought Dutch bank ABN AMRO for about $80.2 billion (€71 billion), funded largely with debt. When credit markets seized up in 2008, RBS ran short of capital, and the UK government injected ~$60.1 billion (£45.5 billion) for roughly 84% of the bank. Goodwin left, and his knighthood was annulled in 2012.
A decade of restructuring
Under Stephen Hester and then Ross McEwan, RBS shrank its balance sheet, sold Citizens Financial Group in the US, exited most overseas markets and settled legacy claims. It returned to an annual profit in 2017. The parent company was renamed NatWest Group in 2020.
Private ownership and growth
The government began selling shares in 2015 and sold its last stake in May 2025. In 2025 NatWest reported total income of ~$21.6 billion (£16.4 billion), profit before tax of ~$10.2 billion (£7.7 billion) and a 19.2% return on tangible equity. On 30 June 2026 it completed the ~$3.56 billion (£2.7 billion) acquisition of Evelyn Partners, and in H1 2026 it earned ~$3.96 billion (£3.0 billion) of attributable profit at a 19.7% RoTE under CEO Paul Thwaite.
