Royal Bank of Scotland boss Ross McEwan insisted the lender was on its way back to health after a “remarkable journey” despite reporting a ninth straight annual loss of £6.96bn.
The state-backed lender remained mired in multi-billion pound costs linked to its record a decade ago when it careered out of control and had to be rescued during the financial crisis.
Now it faces a further period of change as Mr McEwan sets his sights on cost cutbacks of £2bn over the next four years including £750m this year to help it return to profit – and he acknowledged this will mean more job losses.
The result leaves the bank, which includes NatWest as well as the RBS brand, looking some way from a return to the private sector after its £46bn bail-out.
