RBS: Inside The Bank That Ran Out Of Money

RBS: Inside The Bank That Ran Out Of Money

2011, Economics  -   28 Comments
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Ratings: 8.21/10 from 38 users.

RBS: Inside The Bank That Ran Out Of MoneyThe Royal Bank of Scotland was once a famous Scottish institution; a bank with a reputation for prudence.

But in October 2008, less than a decade after Fred Goodwin took over as chief executive, it came within hours of collapsing.

RBS later posted the biggest loss in UK corporate history - 24 billion pounds - which damaged the bank's reputation for financial prudence and Scotland's image as a global financial center.

Using previously unbroadcast footage of the bank's top executives and interviews with bank insiders, this documentary tells the compelling story of a national catastrophe.

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john smith
john smith
4 years ago

BLOCKED IN THE UK ON COPYRIGHT GROUNDS..

j smith
j smith
6 years ago

Can someone please tell me, are these comments made by people living in the UK?
The reason being is that so many of these documentaries are blocked in the Netherlands by the BBC. I can't see them on you tube either.

Joanna Rusher
Joanna Rusher
11 years ago

fabulous example of captainitis. How we become blinded by faith in a leader, or in this case ceo. The greed in banking is beyond belief really, how can we justify paying these people such amounts of money when they essentially produce so little? They are not curing cancer for goodness-sake, not saving the planet from overheating!

scottyladdy
scottyladdy
11 years ago

I used to be the senior conference technician for RBS at Gogarburn in Edinburgh..from 2005 to 2007.I saw all the meetings at the highest level. They did their best and worked very hard, but there was a culture of selfishness and deceit to us as many staff were working for contractors.
I worked for a contractor they had paid for, and was very unhappy with them, not so much the bank, but I remember the board boasting how much salary and bonuses they were earning each year. This was with shareholder agreement and no one protested at all.How on earth could they buy ABM Amro without first checking if the bank had debts is beyond me.. I guess they felt they could do nothing wrong.Fred was treated like god by many staff which I thought was strange! Would love to see those staff now, and remind them that ''I told you so.."

Glen Hale
Glen Hale
11 years ago

Guess they must have failed grade1maths.Next time get a house wife who does the shopping and know how to manage money

Kashif k
Kashif k
11 years ago

i think the real story is different , Mr Fred must have made some serious money and smiling watching this documentry

noconman
noconman
11 years ago

What? The banking system is corrupt? But the banks fund coroporations, politicians, and everyone else who believes in our monetary system!
I guess we are all corrupt, except for those who are to poor to own any money.
If you do not have money, you have no voice. If you have no voice, they will just take your money.
It's the golden rule, afterall, He who owns the gold, makes the rules.
And you thought it was the government making rules? LOL
Government may enact them, but the ones dictating over them do not really care about any other laws, but the ones that make them richer and keep them in control of people.
Our worlds wealthiest individuals have always funded both sides of every war ever fought, all in order to gain more wealth and power. All while sitting on the sidelines, laughing at us for being so blind, and making huge profits from the wars they helped create and funded.
That's the real history of banking and law making.

Coleman R
Coleman R
12 years ago

I really want to watch this. I live in America where, you know, this started. Maybe that's why they won't let me watch it: I've seen it already.

KsDevil
KsDevil
12 years ago

There aught to be a law that prevents these documentaries from being blocked.

Laurence Vanhelsuwe
Laurence Vanhelsuwe
12 years ago

If there is any doubt, by now, in any intelligent Western person that all banks are run by, in essence, crooks, liars and thieves, then I guess humanity will never learn. The current generation of bankers are lucky to survive this extraordinaire age with their heads still firmly attached to their body... 100 or 200 years ago, they would have been dealt with more justly.

tomregit
tomregit
12 years ago

Sheeit! A testiment to how a small number of short sighted, misguided, greedy people are able to short circuit the economy of an entire nation and then walk away.
Quad tantis Romana manus contexuit annis, proditor unus iners, angusto tempore vertit.

Marcelo Fourcade
Marcelo Fourcade
12 years ago

This is England. this is the financial disaster. populism not from left or right wings, just from pure GREED and stupidity. and your prime minister insists (thanks god) to stay away from Germany and the euro.
The day where every nation will have to live and subsist only on their national production, UK will run on fool's meat.

drinker69
drinker69
12 years ago

I hate bankers. I was at the teller once trying to pay a bill with my last 23 dollars and in the lobby they were having a party for the bank. All these people in suits and chicks with fat asses mingling around patting one another on the back. There was a bank mascot in there too in a big blue bear suit. I just finished a day of work in construction and was in the middle of my transaction with the lady sitting behind the counter. Out of nowhere some old fart in a polyester suit and 5 dollar tie comes in the middle of us and hands the fackin teller chick a piece of cake. You know, with a plastic fork and paper plate. Then he goes back to the meet and greet bullsh*t like nothing happened. I thought it was rude and stared at the teller lady. She didn't think it was right I could tell so I walked into the crowd and tipped the rest of the cake on the floor and punched the bear in the face.

mustbefree
mustbefree
12 years ago

just hold your horses, these bankers do a very good job...NOT!!!!

DaveJay
DaveJay
12 years ago

sir fred is a wanker and before you delete this ask him - have you ever wanked sir fred - this is a staement of fact

Simple Simon says
Simple Simon says
12 years ago

Man demands growth, but there is no growth in nature, only birth and death, seems that those that want growth have no understanding of death.

Could be that the wrong people owned it.

Far Spam
Far Spam
12 years ago

Its funny they are all knighted... wonder how much of the bank is owned by the British Royals... also if ABN Amro was a deal pushed by the Royals in Holland... cant believe that they didnt know what they were buying into...

CeilingCat
CeilingCat
12 years ago

Toward the end of this documentary you will see Larry Fish with a smirk on his face. Larry Fish didn’t invest in the sub-prime market; he was much smarter than that. He owned 10 billion dollars in other investments, which later turned toxic!
There would be an element of poetic justice here, if it weren’t for the fact that Larry left with a pension fund of 27 million dollars.

No tent city for Larry then.

However, there is an element of déjà vu displayed by the actions of RBS; the arrogance, hubris, invincibility, justifications, excuses and eventual lies told by the directors. A parallel could be drawn with a certain invasion that was performed along similar lines, with disastrous consequences.

What was that expression again: With due diligence!

Good documentary.

Guest
Guest
12 years ago

He said sorry. Thats ok then. Tosser.

Guest
Guest
12 years ago

Watching this is going to be like picking a scab, I know its going to hurt but I'm going to do it anyway.