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UK Banks face major changes

Report

The most radical¹ reform of British banks in at least a generation has been proposed by the independent commission on banking² set up by the Treasury³.

What's recommended is as close to a formal break-up of Britain's biggest banks as it's possible to get without obliging the likes of Barclays and Royal Bank of Scotland to physically⁴ separate their retail⁵ and investment banking operations.

All of Britain's leading banks would have to put retail banking, which provides vital services to individuals and businesses, behind a new ring fence or firewall.

The retail operations of Barclays and Royal Bank of Scotland, for example, would have their own boards, they would have to raise additional capital as a protection against losses and they could have very few financial links with the investment banks also owned by Barclays and Royal Bank of Scotland.

Up to two trillion pounds of loans and investments would end up behind these ring fences and the big idea is to reduce the danger that there may once again be huge costs for taxpayers⁶ as and when there's a banking crisis on the scale of the crash of 2008.

The biggest structural⁷ changes would be faced by Barclays and RBS, which are likely to warn that costs will be increased for themselves and for their customers.

The commission, however, believes that the reduction of risks for taxpayers means that there would be a clear net economic gain.

Robert Peston, BBC News