Coutts bank closed the bank account of one of the principle protagonists of Brexit Nigel Farage due to his relationship with Donald Trump and his campaign in favor of the exit of the United Kingdom from the European Union, amongst other claims. This would be demonstrated by a 36-page document obtained by Farage himself through a request for access to his private information.
The ex-politician highlighted that the transcripts explaining the closure of his account mention Brexit 30 times, Russia, 22 times -with information, according to him denied, linking him to the media of that country-. And to Donald Trump, 14 times.
Farage also pointed out that the bank's internal documents show that he met the financial criteria to maintain his account, even though a spokesmen for the financial institution claimed in an interview with the BBC that it had an alleged lack of funds, which gave sufficient cause to sever its relationship with the now political commentator.
"While it is accepted that no criminal convictions have resulted -gosh, they sound disappointed, don't they?- commentaries and behaviours that do not align with the banks purpose and values have been demonstrated," Farage read part of the brief in a video on his YouTube account.
Trump's friend
"This was not a political decision, but one centred around inclusivity and purpose," reads copies of the minutes of the meeting where Coutts' wealth reputational risk committee was briefed on the reasons for discontinuing Farage's services.
After stating that the political commentator's values do not match those of the bank, the text notes that "at best he is
seen as xenophobic and pandering to racists, and at worst, he is seen as xenophobic and racist."
Another of the 'accusations' against Farage, is his relationship with former President Trump. These range from mere mention of their "friendship" to specific examples of their support for the Republican candidate:
Endorsements of Donald Trump including defending Trump’s “grab them by the pussy” remarks as “locker room banter” and stating that Trump was "not running to be Pope.” Adverse press shows that NF continues to support Trump despite the many new legal issues he faces.
Since April 2018 Farage has been a strong advocate for U.S. President Donald Trump to receive the Nobel Peace Prize on the basis of his attempt to bring better diplomatic relations between North Korea and South Korea as well as better diplomatic relations between North Korea and the United States. As a member of the European Parliament, Farage expressed his desire to begin an official petition for Trump to receive the award.
All of these would be, according to the financial institution, examples of the bad press of its former client. Other examples listed in the document are his support for tennis player Novak Djokovic, and for his opposition to the vaccine, and his refusal to speak out in favor of same-sex marriages, while acknowledging:
He (for Farage) added that he would not campaign to abolish same-sex marriage. He also believes that people who oppose same-sex marriage, such as Christian and Muslim communities, should be allowed to speak out about their beliefs.
Isolated case?
"It is surely possible to disagree profoundly with Farage’s views on most issues and find Coutts’ stance alarmingly illiberal," commented financial journalist Nils Pratley in an article in The Guardian. That seems to be the prevailing view in the UK, regardless of the political picture. A recent YouGov poll reveals that the vast majority of Britons oppose banks writing off customers because of their personal or political beliefs:
Should banks be allowed to remove customers who have personal or political beliefs that don't align with the bank's values?
All Britons
Should: 15%
Should not: 62%Con voters
Should: 10%
Should not: 76%Lab voters
Should: 24%
Should not: 53%https://t.co/rzkAc9mGGz pic.twitter.com/Zw85VnnfW2— YouGov (@YouGov) July 19, 2023
"There is a huge silent majority out there!," Farage opined about the survey, as well as commenting that a dozen banks refused to work with him after he was dropped by Coutts.
This would not be the first case in which Coutts has dropped clients because of its ESG policies. Something similar is said to have happened with the daughter of Tory Lord Forsyth and the son of Lord Kirkhope, according to local media outlet, The Telegraph.
Waiting for an answer
Despite the ex-official's requests, no senior bank executive publicly justified the decision. A spokesman for the entity did issue a statement last Thursday assuring that they did not stop working with him "only" because of his political positions:
Decisions to close an account are not taken lightly and involve a number of factors including commercial viability, reputational considerations, and legal and regulatory requirements.
This reply, however, was not enough: Farage shared in a tweet that "there are calls" for the banks to appear before a parliamentary committee to explain their policies.
Telegraph: There are now calls for senior executives of Coutts and NatWest to be summoned before a parliamentary committee to explain their actions, their policies and the extent of the de-banking scandal.
— Nigel Farage (@Nigel_Farage) July 20, 2023
