First Direct and Natwest closing bank accounts for political reasons inc being gender critical

[Snorkers]

Apprently First Direct have closed the account of the Wings over Scotland founder for his beliefs (He's Gender Critical), and Coutts, owned by Natwest, closed Nigel Farage's account.
Whatever you think of Nigel Farage he is entitled to a bank account.

This is really worrying.

I bank with First Direct. I am gender critical. Do I need to hide my beliefs to keep my bank account? Will tey stop me getting access to my money?

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12249755/Nigel-Farage-claims-three-loved-ones-bank-accounts-closed-Brexit.html

Just a reminder that Sheldon Mills long time trustee and erstwhile chair of stonewall works fir the FCA

FCA, that colossus of integrity and rigour that holds financial institutions to account. No conflicts of interest nor cosy relationships with their banking chums from previous jobs of course. Nothing to see here, move along…

An Observer article eviscerating Coutt's virtue signalling.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/jul/23/coutts-virtue-signalling-plan-flaw-nigel-farage-so-many-ghastly-clients

Misogyny relegated to 'other'.

Coutts were going after Farage for the woke points, and didn't anticipate just how much of a stink he'd be prepared to kick up and how much would start coming out about banks deplaning their customers. If I were a client of Coutts I'd be seriously questioning their commercial judgement.

I can't understand why they thought that he wouldn't kick up a massive stink. He's not exactly known for being quiet and retiring, is he? Of course he was going to kick off, and of course news outlets would broadcast it. He's good headline material, always has been. Maybe they thought post-brexit he was less newsworthy?

Seems a massive error in judgement, just on that basis.

I think they actually talked about the likelihood of him kicking up a stink, didn't they? I assume they decided it was worth it and that some of the publicity might even have positive results? And judging by some comments on this thread and others, they might be right on that score.

And I am not going to add the obligatory sentence about my views on Farage and blah blah blah because my personal opinion of him is totally irrelevant.

I can't understand why they thought that he wouldn't kick up a massive stink. He's not exactly known for being quiet and retiring, is he? Of course he was going to kick off

And there's another reason to question their judgement. Really, would you want people this stupid in charge of your money?

NF being like a dog with a bone on this and getting the banks back in their boxes on the subject of providing services to people with views that go against current orthodoxy may well prove to be a great benefit to society as a whole

he fucking owes us one for Brexit that's for sure

I think they dismissed risks to the bank from Farage kicking up a fuss on the basis that "everyone hates Farage" and so everyone would be on board with their dirty tricks and disregard of the Equality Act. They were partly right, a lot of people did fall for that, but they seemed to be so ideologically blinkered that they weren't even aware that there are a substantial number of people who don't buy into their world view and, more importantly, who dislike to see abuses of power by very large corporate entities.

it's them thinking they're the good guys and then thinking anything they do must be good innit?

chaps, you provide banking services to General Pinochet

the good guys you ain't. and neither should they be. we've got churches for moral judgement

And that's just the bad guy we know about. If Coutts doesn't have Russian money somewhere I'd be very surprised. Anyone who thinks banks are fine upstanding corporates is deluded - HSBC was facilitating money laundering for the cartels in Mexico and Columbia.

So many important issues going on right now

Like the debanking of other people. If the banks can eject Farage and Alexandra Tolstoy, they can eject me and you.

Do you have no sense of rational self-interest at all, @Nina888?

"everyone hates Farage"

1. He won the Brexit vote. I'll grant that some people have regretted voting to leave, but there's still a substantial proportion of the population who agree with him.

2. If I had a dartboard, his face would be on it. Every time I see his smug smirk on TV, I want to punch the screen. Yet even I can see that this thread is not about him, it's about the behaviour of Coutts and other banks.

NF being like a dog with a bone on this and getting the banks back in their boxes on the subject of providing services to people with views that go against current orthodoxy may well prove to be a great benefit to society as a whole

It would be the only good thing he ever did.

Do you have no sense of rational self-interest at all, @Nina888?

I doubt that that has even been considered. All that matters is detestation of Farage and the schadenfreude that he's apparently getting his comeuppance.

Coutts has an operational arm in Qatar. How are the Qataris' "publicly stated views not at odds with Coutts position as an inclusive organisation." Why do they get a pass? Surely such a fine, upstanding, principled company is not compromising their ethics for money?! 🙀 Not Coutts!!

Coutts has an operational arm in Qatar. How are the Qataris' "publicly stated views not at odds with Coutts position as an inclusive organisation." Why do they get a pass? Surely such a fine, upstanding, principled company is not compromising their ethics for money?! 🙀 Not Coutts

I hope this is pointed out to Alison Rose if she ever has the guts to answer questions.

It seems pretty clear to me that they just HATED NF for Brexit and wanted to get him. So badly that it blinded them to just how big hypocrites they were going to make of themselves

The BBC have finally given their inevitable apology to Nigel Farage:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-66288464

I wonder how Simon Jack, the Business Editor for BBC News, feels about being manipulated by Coutts/NatWest to spread disinformation?

https://twitter.com/BBCSimonJack/status/1683496780728524800

Meanwhile Frances Coppola moves quickly to centre herself as the victim in this:

https://twitter.com/Frances_Coppola/status/1683503371985080325

I am so enjoying the disingenuous self-pity:

https://twitter.com/Frances_Coppola/status/1683505894691164160

What does she mean when she says the BBC have thrown her under the bus? The piece says at the end that journalists have to be able to trust their sources but that in this case they were wrong to trust whoever it was. How is that a pop at her? Or does she just mean that now she looks silly for swallowing the Coutts line?

The latter. She explains so in her recent run of tweets. It is amusing to see.

Wow, that was a fulsome apology from the Beeb. It's made Farage look very gracious 😠

If Coppola is feeling stupid, well, if the cap fits. Anyway aren't we due another cut of Apocalypse Now now 😀

Some people on this thread were also.......misled.

Has anyone pointed out to her that looking like a “dishonest fool” is something she has done to herself?

She's currently getting what's known as the "hug box" treatment on Twitter that's going so way to salve her hurt feelings.