It’s a month since the Farage Coutts row blew up and there’s no sign of it calming down any time soon. The asinine decision of the bank to close the Brexiteer’s account because they didn’t like his politics and then to tell the BBC that it was down to commercial reasons now looks to be the financial equivalent of Pearl Harbour. NatWest boss Alison Rose – the Djimi Traore of the banking world – was last week forced to issue a grovelling apology after the bank’s own goal.
But that’s not enough for City Minister Andrew Griffith, who will summon Rose and eighteen other bank chiefs to give assurances that customers ‘can access payment accounts without fear of being de-banked for their lawful expression.’ Last week, the Treasury announced reforms designed to give customers greater protections, give them more time to challenge decisions or to find replacement banks. New measures include making banks explain why they are shutting an account, and extending the notice period from 30 days to 90 days.
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