HABIB Bank Zurich is set to win business from RBS after winning a place on the switching scheme designed to increase competition in the UK’s small and medium sized enterprise market.
The lender, which has branches in England, was the twelfth bank deemed eligible to participate in the Incentivised Switching Scheme.
Other participants will include Clydesdale Bank which won confirmation yesterday that its revised proposal was acceptable to the organisation that will monitor the scheme.
Read more: Challenger banks rage over delays to RBS competition fund
The switching scheme will provide up to £275 million support to SME customers of Royal Bank to move their business to other lenders.
RBS agreed to provide the funding to satisfy European competition concerns arising from its £45 billion bailout during the financial crisis.
Under chief executive Ross McEwan the bank developed alternative proposals after failing first to spin-off and then offload its 300-strong Williams & Glyn branch network.
Read more: RBS chief quits with customer service regret
In April Mr McEwan announced plans to stand down once a successor was appointed.
Lenders that want to win support under the scheme must win approval from Banking Competition Remedies, which was formed to implement the programme.
The organisation said 12,110 SMEs had switched banks under the scheme by June 30.
It noted that Clydesdale Bank, the Co-operative Bank, and TSB had put forward revised offers, which had been accepted.
Nationwide’s place on the scheme has been confirmed after the building society submitted details of its planned offer.
It had been accepted in principle.
Clydesdale’s owner CYBG has said the Clydesdale brand will be phased out by the end of 2021. It will be replaced by CYBG’s Virgin Money brand.
CYBG confirmed it would be participating in the switching scheme.
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