The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has found that NatWest breached banking rules by forcing business customers to open a business current account, which incurs fees, in order to secure a loan – a practice known as ‘bundling’.
As such, hundreds of businesses were charged monthly for a business account that they may not have wanted or needed. It also limited businesses’ choice, as they were unable to hold an account with a separate provider, which may have better met their requirements.
The breach took place between 2017 and 2020, with NatWest failing to alert the CMA until January 2021.
