RBS to move from flagship City of London office with sale planned

Royal Bank Scotland is to leave its main base within the City of London by the end of next year, in the latest instalment of its relentless cost-cutting strategy.

The Edinburgh-headquartered bank has revealed that it will move out of the 280 Bishopsgate building and relocate down the road to offices at number 250, which it is planning to revamp later this year.

RBS stressed that the move does not involve redundancies but those staff who cannot be fitted in at the 250 office will be dispersed throughout other locations.

The move is the latest cost-cutting initiative announced by the 73 per cent state-owned lender since it made the highly controversial decision in December to close 259 RBS and Natwest branches - 62 in Scotland - and cull 680 jobs.

Announcing the move from 280 Bishopsgate, a spokesperson said that there is no deal already lined-up to sell 280 Bishopsgate lined up.

RBS was reported last year to be selling its Premier Place London office to an arm of Quebec’s government pension manager, Ivanhoe Cambridge. The offer price was said to be slightly less than the £145m the bank was seeking, according to Bloomberg.

Announcing the decision to sell 280 Broadgate, the RBS spokesman said: “As we become a simpler, smaller UK-focused bank and as we encourage more flexible ways of working, we no longer require the same amount of office space as we once did.

He added: “We will be exiting 280 Bishopsgate by the end of 2019 which will further reduce our property costs in London. We will be revamping our nearby office at 250 Bishopsgate later in the year to accommodate more staff and to create a better, more flexible working environment.”