Shredded

An award-winning journalist details the near-collapse of the Royal Bank of Scotland in the late 2000s. For a few brief months in 2007 and 2009, the Royal Bank of Scotland was the largest bank in the world. Then the Edinburgh-based giant—having rapidly grown its footprint to 55 countries and stretched its assets to £2.4 trillion under its hubristic and delinquent former boss Fred Goodwin—crashed to earth. In Shredded, author Ian Fraser explores the series of cataclysmic misjudgments, the toxic internal culture and the “light touch” regulatory regime that gave rise to RBS/NatWest’s near-collapse. He also considers why it became the most expensive bank in the world to bail out and why a culture of impunity was allowed to develop in the banking sector. This new edition brings the story up to date, chronicling the string of scandals that have come to light since taxpayers rescued RBS and concluding with an evaluation of the attempts of the bank’s post-crisis chief executives, Stephen Hester and Ross McEwan, to dismantle Goodwin’s disastrous legacy and restore the damaged institutions to health.Praise for Shredded“A magnificent book. I regard it as one of the best investigative books of the past decade.” —Eamonn O’Neill, BBC Radio Scotland“Impeccably researched and hard to put down at any point—The author pulls no punches.” —Philip Augar, Financial Times (UK)“Combines Greek tragedy with real-life events that have affected us all. It’s hard to put down.” —Devraj Ray, Mortgage Strategy

This is the definitive account of the Royal Bank of Scotland scandal.For a few brief months in 2007 and 2009, the Royal Bank of Scotland was the largest bank in the world. Then the Edinburgh-based giant - having rapidly grown its footprint to 55 countries and stretched its assets to £2.4 trillion under its hubristic and delinquent former boss Fred Goodwin - crashed to earth.In Shredded, Ian Fraser explores the series of cataclysmic misjudgments, the toxic internal culture and the 'light touch' regulatory regime that gave rise to RBS/NatWest's near-collapse. He also considers why it became the most expensive bank in the world to bail out and why a culture of impunity was allowed to develop in the banking sector.This new edition brings the story up to date, chronicling the string of scandals that have come to light since taxpayers rescued RBS and concluding with an evaluation of the attempts of the bank's post-crisis chief executives, Stephen Hester and Ross McEwan, to dismantle Goodwin's disastrous legacy and restore the damaged institutions to health.'A gripping account - RBS was a rogue business, operating in what had become a rogue industry, with the connivance of government. Read it and weep' – Martin Woolf, Financial Times