Time to flog off Directline

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I’m blogging with the sound of a television in the background.

Directline adverts really annoy me right now. This is about a  95% state owned insurance broker / supplier because it is 100% owned by RBS.

For heavens sake, let’s spin it out of RBS to RBS shareholders (plus or minus a cash adjustment or state minority stake β€” I suspect it is worth more than the bank right now)  in exchange for nationalising the remainder of that bank.

They get a viable asset which might pay dividends.

We (through the state) get a banking business we can take to pieces, repackage and refloat in due course in a new form.

It’s a strategy so blindingly obvious it deeply annoys me no one is doing it. And massively cheaper than the toxic loan scheme.

I’m pretty sure the same could be done with Lloyds with little trouble.

Barclays too come to that.

This is the strategy we need to give ourselves the breathing space to rebuild banks.


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