Royal Bank of Scotland Share Price (RBS)

RBS - Royal Bank of Scotland Investor Summary

Royal Bank of Scotland provide bank branching facilities with Natwest and the Ulster bank. There are around 700 branches in the UK. The parent company is the Royal Bank of Scotland group which is separate from the Edinburgh Bank of Scotland.

The company began as early as 1707 when investors in a failed Scottish company set up the Equivalent Society to protect the compensation that they claimed and received. By 1724 they had become the Equivalent Company, investing their money wisely in banking. They were soon competing with the Bank of Scotland (now part of Lloyds Banking Group) and were actually the first bank to offer an overdraft facility. In 1783 they opened the first two branch offices outside Edinburgh and Glasgow, which were quickly followed by other branches across Scotland.

By the nineteenth century the company was already pursuing mergers with other banks and acquired assets and liabilities of the Western bank in 1857 after its collapse. In 1864 they acquired the Dundee Banking Company and by 1910 they had 158 branches. In 1968 they merged with the National Commercial Bank of Scotland to become the largest clearing bank in Scotland.

The financial crisis of 2008 caused devastation to many banks and related businesses. However HM Treasury bought 5 Billion in RBS preferred shares levering its value. RBS will pay back 600 million per annum. HM Treasury also underwrote a 15 Billion share issue for the bank so the British Public gained a 58% stake in the company. While shares are currently low due to the crisis with the assistance they have received, RBS look set to recover and quickly increase share value. RBS- a shrewd investor bank.