RBS reports 446 mln pounds of loss for Q1

Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc (RBS) Thursday reported an attributable loss of 446 million pounds (690 million U.S. dollars) for the first quarter of 2015, citing the huge amount of litigation and conduct charges over the period.

An attributable loss of 446 million pounds for Q1 2015 included restructuring costs of 453 million pounds and 856 million pounds of litigation and conduct charges, said the Edinburgh-headquartered bank.

The group's Revenue for Q1 dropped by 14 percent to 4.33 billion pounds compared with the same period of 2014, but 12 percent higher than the fourth quarter of 2014, data showed.

Operating profit for Q1 totaled 325 million pounds, compared with profit of 1.283 billion pounds a year earlier and a loss of 375 million pounds in Q4 2014, figures showed.

RBS's British franchises have seen volume growth, with increased operating profits in both Personal & Business Banking (PBB) and Commercial & Private Banking (CPB), compared with Q4 2014 supported by benign credit conditions, said RBS.

The group's Common Equity Tier 1 ratio (CET 1), a gauge of financial stamina, was 11.5 percent at the end of March 2015, up from the 0.3 percent at the end of 2014.

In February, the group posted a net loss of 3.47 billion pounds in 2014 compared with a loss of nine billion pounds in 2013. (1 pound=1.55 U.S. dollars) Endit