The Royal Bank of Scotland Group, founded in 1727, is one of Europe’s leading financial services groups. By market capitalisation as at 22 February 2002, it is the second largest bank in the UK and in Europe and ranks fifth in the world.

In March 2000, The Royal Bank of Scotland Group completed the acquisition of NatWest in a £21 billion deal that was the largest takeover in British banking history.

The enlarged Royal Bank of Scotland Group has a market capitalisation of £49 billion as at 22 February 2002, compared with £19.7 billion immediately after the takeover. It has more than 18 million UK personal customers, 2,287 UK branches and total assets at 31 December 2001 of £368 billion. The Group employs over 105,000 staff worldwide.

The enlarged group increased its profit before tax, goodwill amortisation and integration costs by 32 per cent to £5,801 million in the year to 31 December 2001. Profit before tax increased 28 per cent to £4,275 million. All businesses across the group contributed to the increase with total income up 18 per cent to £14,581 million. During 31 December 1999 to 31 December 2001, the group increased the total return to shareholders by 70 per cent, well above any of its UK banking peers.

In addition to the provision of a full range of banking services under The Royal Bank of Scotland and NatWest brands, the enlarged group also includes other organisations well known in financial circles:

The Royal Bank of Scotland Group enjoys leading positions across a range of different areas:

In addition to the UK, the Group has offices in Europe, the US, and Asia. A strategic alliance with BSCH of Spain provides scope for development of financial service activities across Europe. Tesco Personal Finance, a joint venture with Tesco, is one of the main supermarket banking brands in the UK.