ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND GROUP PLC is within a rising trend. Continued positive development within the trend channel is indicated. The stock has broken up through the resistance at pence 50.00. A further rise to 100p (1) is predicted in the medium term. The stock is assessed as technically positive for the medium long term.

Good luck -

A piece in one of my financial comics says that Gordon Brown is not too far away from becoming Chairman of RBS.

After the May election he will no longer be an MP and will need something to do.

Funnily enough, Royal Bank of Scotland will be needing a new chairman, since Sir Philip Hampton will be switching to GlaxoSmithKline late in 2015.

Brown's CV looks right and he knows about finance (Yes? Yes!) and he is Scottish which should help with this particular bank. He can turn around dire situations and also play the long game (eg, against Tony Blair). RBS also owes him a favour after he rode to the rescue in 2009.

In fact, he is very near the absolute perfect match for the job!

RBS Royal Bank Scotland looks to have been way oversold a presents an opportunity for a medium term trade. TGT 415p

Royal Bank of Scotland has come under fire again for mis-selling government-backed loans to small businesses.

Following an internal investigation, the state-backed giant has admitted failings in the way it sold Enterprise Finance Guarantee (EFG) loans.

The EFG was set up in 2009 to boost lending by providing a 75 per cent government guarantee to banks willing to lend to viable small businesses which could not get credit.

But RBS, the biggest user of the scheme, says staff incorrectly told some customers they were covered by the government guarantee.

This lulled small firms into a false sense of security and after several customers defaulted on their loan repayments, they discovered that they remained liable to the bank for the entire outstanding loan.

The Federation of Small Businesses said the revelations would hurt already-poor levels of trust between businesses and banks.

John Allan, its national chairman, added: ‘We are deeply disappointed that yet another example of a bank mis-selling to businesses has come to light. It is completely unacceptable for firms to be misled in this way.’

RBS (up 0.1p to 362.8p) initially played down the damaging allegations. But an internal investigation led by Alison Rose, the head of commercial and private banking, has found evidence RBS was at fault.

The failings infuriated business secretary Vince Cable who visited senior RBS executives to discuss the problem. He said: ‘I have asked that RBS puts the situation right as quickly as possible, so that neither RBS customers nor taxpayers are adversely affected.’

The bank has started to contact up to 1,800 customers who have defaulted on their loan or struggled to meet their repayments. It said just 320 have defaulted.

Daily Mail

Deutsche Bank lost $150million on CHF volatility and Barclays lost "tens of millions" according to Dow Jones reports. I wouldn't touch this share with a bargepole right now.

Loads errrrrrr money doodlemug.

Chart of the week: Royal Bank of Scotland - ideal trade at low risk

Jefferies International Buy 384.00 384.00 500.00 530.00 Reiterates

Looking quite strong.

Results 26th Feb - Financial Calendar

17 Feb 15 Morgan Stanley Equal weight 395.70 405.00 425.00 Retains

16 Feb 15 Investec Sell 395.70 380.00 380.00 Downgrades

Post split high is 403.90p

Final results Thursday 26th February.

Exclusive - RBS asks restructuring chief to shrink investment bank

404.40 high.

Final Results part 1

Statutory operating profit before tax, which excludes results from discontinued operations, was £2,643 million compared with an operating loss of £8,849 million in 2013.

2014 was a year of significant progress for the bank, in which we delivered against all our commitments. In line with the new strategy it set out in 2014, RBS has:

● Implemented a new organisational design for a more UK-centred bank with focused international capabilities, built around its strongest customer franchises.

● Exceeded its 2014 cost reduction targets with savings of £1.1 billion.

● Strengthened its Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio by 2.6 percentage points to 11.2% at the end of 2014, assisted by £4.8 billion of net capital release from RCR disposals and run-off.

● Successfully listed Citizens as a step towards full divestment by the end of 2016.

● Reached agreement with HM Treasury on the restructuring of the Dividend Access Share (DAS) and paid an initial dividend of £320 million.

● Completed much of the orderly run-down and closure of the US asset-backed product business, removing £15 billion of RWAs from the balance sheet.

● Completed a strategic review of Ulster Bank and the wealth businesses, launching a sales process for the international private banking activities(2).

● Continued to rationalise, simplify and strengthen operating systems and processes, with a more secure mobile banking platform, faster overnight batch processing and key services available to customers 99.96% of the time.

● Made our products simpler and fairer for customers, ending zero per cent balance transfers, halting teaser rates on savings accounts that penalise existing customers and explaining all charges for personal and business customers on one side of A4 paper.

Partial Sale of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. Stake

Further to the announcement by The Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc ("RBSG") on the 23rd March 2015, RBSG today announces the final pricing of the offering of shares in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. ("CFG" or "Citizens") ("the Offer").

The Offer comprises 135 million shares, or 24.7%, of Citizens common stock at a public offering price per share of $23.75.

RBSG has also granted a 15% over-allotment option, under which the underwriters have a 30-day option to purchase an additional 20.25 million shares at the public offering price, less the underwriting discount. If the underwriters exercise this option in full, the total offering size, including the shares pursuant to the over-allotment option, would comprise 155.25 million shares, or 28.4% of Citizens common stock.

Gross proceeds realised by RBSG will be $3.2 billion ($3.7 billion assuming exercise in full of the over-allotment option) with the cash proceeds being used for general business purposes.

Following the offering, RBSG will continue to hold up to 45.6% of CFG's shares of common stock (41.9% assuming exercise of the entire over-allotment option), which are subject to a 90-day lock-up. During this period, the lock-up agreement is subject to modification, waiver or cancellation. RBSG will continue to consolidate Citizens in its financial statements.

The partial sale is part of RBSG's strategy to fully exit its holding in CFG by the end of 2016 as part of its European Commission state aid commitments.

March 26, 2015 3:09 pm - RBS agrees to sell Coutts International to Swiss bank UBP

RBS Disposal of Private Banking and Wealth Businesses

RBS announces further sale of a North American loan portfolio to Mizuho

1st Quarter Results

Highlights

Q1 2015 performance

● The loss attributable to ordinary and B shareholders was £446 million, compared with a loss of £5,791 million in Q4 2014 and a profit of £1,195 million in Q1 2014.
● Total income was £4,331 million, up 12% from Q4 2014 but 14% lower than Q1 2014, reflecting the reduction in the scale and risk profile of CIB. Net interest income was £2,756 million, with new business margins broadly stable but with a lower Q1 day count. Non-interest income of £1,575 million benefited from lower IFRS volatility costs and disposal gains in RBS Capital Resolution (RCR).
● Operating expenses totalled £4,097 million, with adjusted operating expenses down 15% from Q1 2014 at £2,788 million, reflecting continuing headcount reductions. Compared with Q4 2014, adjusted expenses were down 11%, or 3% after excluding the impact of the UK bank levy booked in Q4. Operating expenses included £856 million of litigation and conduct charges, relating to foreign exchange and mortgage-backed securities litigation and investigations in the United States together with other customer redress. Restructuring costs amounted to £453 million, down from Q4 2014 but higher than Q1 2014, and related principally to a write-down of the value of US premises.
● Impairment releases of £91 million reflected continuing benign credit conditions in all franchises, though at a lower rate than in Q4 2014.
● Operating profit was £325 million, compared with a profit of £1,283 million in Q1 2014 and a loss of £375 million in Q4 2014. Excluding restructuring, litigation and conduct costs, operating profit was £1,634 million, up 16% from Q1 2014.
● Statutory operating profit before tax from continuing operations was £53 million, compared with a profit of £1,490 million in Q1 2014 and a loss of £683 million in Q4 2014. After a tax charge of £193 million the loss from continuing operations was £140 million. The Q1 tax rate reflects property and conduct costs in the US for which a deferred tax asset has not been recognised and the non deductibility of certain other UK conduct costs and strategic disposal losses.
● Results from discontinued operations included a net loss of £320 million reflecting the fall in the market value of Citizens shares during the quarter, from $24.86 at 31 December 2014 to $24.13 at 31 March 2015.
● Strategic disposals losses comprise a net charge of £122 million in respect of International Private Banking and £13 million mainly in relation to RBS Kazakhstan.
● Tangible net asset value per ordinary and equivalent B share was 384p at 31 March 2015, compared with 387p at 31 December 2014.

Balance sheet and capital

● Funded assets at 31 March 2015 were £714 billion, up 2% from December 2014 but down 4% from the prior year. The increase in Q1 principally reflected the strengthening of the US dollar against sterling, together with client-driven trading activity and settlement balances returning from seasonal lows at the year end.
● Loans and advances to customers, excluding disposal groups, totalled £333 billion, with the continuing wind-down in RCR offsetting growth in certain strategic segments. Risk elements in lending fell by 21%, £5.9 billion to £22.3 billion at 31 March 2015, representing 5.4% of gross customer loans compared with 6.8% at 31 December 2014 and 9.0% at March 2014.

more....

Bought some more of these today at 334.5. It's now my biggest holding by some way.

Looking for about 400 as a target

Numis Add 340.90 400.00 400.00 Reiterates

Deutsche Bank Hold 340.90 395.00 395.00 Reiterates