Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) said its potential bill for claims against its small business restructuring division will remain at £400m (€448m) after misconduct allegations against it were dismissed by Britain’s financial regulator.

A major probe by a law firm found no evidence that Ulster Bank put viable companies out of business in order to seize their assets.

A Royal Bank of Scotland executive has denied the bank profits from small business customers in financial distress.

The head of the Ulster Bank has warned of future branch closures in response to a huge ongoing shift towards on-line banking.

Small businesses from Bath to Bradford are having their lifeblood sucked out by “vampire” banking practices, the author of a report alleging unscrupulous behaviour by Royal Bank of Scotland has told British MPs.

Royal Bank of Scotland is facing allegations of “unscrupulous” treatment of small businesses in a report claiming the lender drove firms to collapse to buy back their assets at rock-bottom prices.