RBS unveils sweeping new structure as ring-fencing looms

LONDON, Sept 30 (Reuters) - Royal Bank of Scotland announced on Friday a sweeping overhaul of its structure andbanking brands as it outlined plans to separate its retailoperations from riskier parts of its business by 2019.

The lender said its ring-fenced bank would be called NatWestHoldings, comprising its core NatWest, Coutts & Co, Ulster BankLimited and Ulster Bank Ireland DAC brands.

Its private bank, Adam & Company, will be renamed Royal Bankof Scotland PLC as part of the changes, while its Corporate andInstitutional Banking business and its Channel Islandsoperations will be held in a non ring-fenced entity calledNatWest Markets.

The changes will see the bank's historic Royal Bank ofScotland retail brand confined largely to Scotland.

The government-ordered ring-fencing initiative aims to avoida repeat of the 2008 financial crisis, when banks' bad tradingbets threatened to sink ordinary depositors and mortgageborrowers, leading to massive taxpayer-funded bailouts.

The new ring-fenced businesses, which will be funded andcapitalised separately, must include UK retail banking and smallbusiness customers and most simple banking transactions.

Big global corporate customers and most investment bankingactivities will be held in a separate entity.

RBS, which is 73 percent owned by the British taxpayer, isthe latest bank to announce how it plans to reform its businessto comply with the changes, recommended by the VickersCommission in 2011.

HSBC outlined similar plans to relocate its UKbusiness to Birmingham last year, while Barclays overhauled its operating structure in March to create two coredivisions, including Barclays UK, to aid its compliance with thenew rules. (Reporting By Andrew MacAskill, editing by Sinead Cruise)