Rebuilding trust and getting back to the basics of banking are the main priorities of Royal Bank of Scotland as it continues on its road to recovery, said its chief executive, Ross McEwan.

Ulster Bank made a £1.04bn (€1.26bn) operating loss in 2012, which is a 5% increase on the £984m loss in 2011, as mortgage arrears continue to mount.

Two of the largest banking groups in Britain have said their Irish operations pose their biggest problems for loan book recovery.

Ulster Bank is believed to be looking at selling its Dublin-based investment property loan portfolio, estimated to be worth a combined €1 billion.

Britain took the rare step of stripping former Royal Bank of Scotland chief Fred Goodwin of his knighthood, after intense criticism of his role in RBS’s near-collapse during the 2008 credit crisis, and amid public anger towards wealthy bankers.

The chief executive of bailed-out lender Ulster Bank’s owners, Royal Bank of Scotland, already under political pressure to give back a £1 million (€1.2m) bonus for 2011, could get eight times as much in future under his current contract.

OPERATING losses at Ulster Bank almost doubled, last year to £761 million (€887m) — driven by a severe ratcheting up of impairment charges — but the bank is hopeful of some improvement in the second half of this year.

ULSTER Bank chief executive Cormac McCarthy has stressed that the company remains a core part of parent group Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), despite the Irish bank posting operating losses of £85 million (€97m) for the third quarter of the year.

British supermarket giant Tesco plans to open 30 bank branches in its stores in the UK by the end of this year as part of its continued push into financial services, it emerged today.

Royal Bank of Scotland today abandoned plans to sell its insurance arm, which includes the Direct Line, Churchill and Privilege brands.

THE British Government looks set to increase its stake in the Royal Bank of Scotland group (RBS) — stopping just short of nationalising the business — which is set to report the biggest ever annual loss for a publicly-quoted British company next month.

A Royal Bank of Scotland-led team today put further pressure on rival ABN Amro suitor Barclays, as the consortium tabled a formal £48.2 billion offer for the Dutch Bank.

Royal Bank of Scotland turned up the heat on rival Barclays after today sweetening the terms of its £48.2 bn (€71bn) offer for Dutch bank ABN Amro.

Six Nations sponsors RBS have agreed a four-year contract extension as backers of European rugby’s blue-riband tournament.

Royal Bank of Scotland today announced a 15% rise in annual profits to a record £8.1bn (€11.7bn) after a strong performance across its businesses.