RBS on the move after big upturn in business

Aug 6 2008 By Iain Laing, The Journal

THE Royal bank of Scotland is moving its headquarters in the Tees Valley to a new office, five times the size of its previous base.

The Edinburgh bank said that business is growing so fast at its operation in the area that it needed to expand into the new offices in Dunedin House on the Forsyth Business Centre in Stockton on Tees. The new headquarters will have room not only for the Tees Valley Commercial Banking team but Lombard, the asset finance arm of RBS, RBS Invoice Finance, Independent Financial Services, Business Banking, Global Transaction Services and Coutts.

The fast-growing team at the offices covers a wide area not only of Teesside, but running from the southern end of County Durham down to Northallerton in North Yorkshire.

RBS has taken the entire first floor of Dunedin House, increasing the floor space by 500% to 5,385 sq ft and the teams are due to move into their striking new offices this week. The bank said that its move to the Forsyth Business Centre shows its confidence in the potential for winning new business in the area and its commitment to current customers in the Tees Valley and North Yorkshire area.

James Cornell, director of commercial banking for RBS in Tees Valley, said: "The region is of enormous importance to RBS and our commitment to the area is reflected through the significant investment we have made.

"Moving to a new office provides us with an opportunity to bring together staff from across the RBS Group for the benefit of our customers. This will enable us to work more closely together and allow us to create more bespoke financial solutions for businesses across Tees Valley. Our focus is firmly centred on our customers who have access to a dedicated, professional and highly experienced relationship team. Tees Valley is a growing region and one that is attracting greater investment and an increasingly sophisticated customer base.

"Our objective is to create a centre of excellence that will allow us to offer innovative and flexible thinking, extensive resources and unrelenting focus on our relationships with the business community."