RBS deal to net UK taxpayers £1.5bn

State-backed Royal Bank of Scotland has agreed to pay £1.5bn to the British taxpayer in a complex deal ultimately enabling it to resume future dividend payouts and which it hopes will accelerate its tortuous return to the private sector.

The embattled lender, 80% owned by the UK Treasury, hopes that the agreement will help pump its shares back up towards the price that will enable the British government to break even on its £45 billion rescue at the height of the financial crisis.