RBS ‘spent £200m on sport sponsorships’
Sunday 15th February 2009, 11:55AM GMT.
The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) spent £200 million on sponsorship deals with top sportsmen just weeks before it required a government bailout, it has emerged.
The Times on Sunday reports that the firm, which is 68 per cent owned by the taxpayer, signed long-term contracts with global ambassadors before it was given emergency assistance by the Treasury in October.
Rider Zara Phillips, cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, golfer Jack Nicklaus and former racing star Sir Jackie Stewart all penned contracts with the firm as part of the its efforts to sponsor sporting events around the world.
The news comes after the bank announced that it had made a loss of £28 billion last year and after chancellor Alistair Darling publicly warned that no one responsible for the bank’s losses should be paid a bonus.
Commenting on the news, Treasury select committee member MP John Mann told the paper: “They have been reckless yet again. This doesn’t seem to be a bank that could do anything in moderation. It now needs to realise the golden days are over.”
The Times quotes a spokesman for RBS as saying: “All our sponsorship agreements were negotiated on commercial principles and meet strict corporate governance rules.”
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