Scoban to get its banking licence from regulator

SCOBAN, the fledgling private bank being launched in Edinburgh, took a giant step forward yesterday after being promised a banking licence by the financial regulator.

Scoban chairman Ray Entwistle. Picture: Jeremy Stockton

Ray Entwistle, Scoban’s chairman, said that, following the green light from the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), work would press ahead with a £40 million fund-raising. This will comprise £4m from existing investors and £36m from blue-chip institutions and wealth managers.

Entwistle said that the bank was now on schedule to open its Charlotte Street head office and an office in London’s West End by the autumn.

He said: “Our bank will be based around the true values and traditions of the great British private bank where the service is rendered on an entirely personal basis via dedicated and highly trained discreet personnel.”

Graeme Hartop, Scoban’s managing director, said: “There is still a dislocation in the banking marketplace, as evidenced almost every day in the press, and this causes worry and some distress to clients.

“We are told regularly that stability, continuity of personnel, and intelligent, speedy decisions are the key points in a client relationship.”

Scoban, which will employ about 40 people in Charlotte Square and eight in its London office, had to submit a 550-page application to the PRA last September to get the licence, which is subject to agreed capital requirements for the new bank.