RBS denies deliberately misleading investors

Ulster Bank’s parent company Royal Bank of Scotland said it and its former bosses may have made bad business decisions in the past but that does not mean they misled investors or acted illegally, as it prepared to lodge its defence against a lawsuit from shareholders.

RBS said it planned to file its defence against a £4bn (€4.75bn) lawsuit in London’s High Court yesterday.

The Royal Bank of Scotland Shareholder Action Group is suing the bank and four former directors on behalf of about 100 institutions and 10,000 private shareholders, alleging they were misled over the bank’s financial strength in a rights issue prospectus published months before RBS almost collapsed.