By Lars Mucklejohn
Nationwide’s chief executive Debbie Crosbie has ruled out a move to Natwest as the troubled bank looks for a new boss.
Debbie Crosbie, who joined the building society last June, has been a favourite to replace Dame Alison Rose after she left Natwest in July over a scandal involving the closure of Nigel Farage’s Coutts bank account.
The Brexiteer and former Ukip leader claimed that he was unfairly “debanked” for his political views.
Earlier this month, Natwest cleared Rose of misconduct and stripped her of £7.6m in shares and bonuses in an attempt to draw a line under the scandal.
The bank is still looking for a new chief executive, having already appointed ex-Mastercard boss Richard Haythornthwaite as its chair in September to take over from Sir Howard Davies in January.
Crosbie distanced herself from the job while announcing Nationwide’s half-year results on Friday.
“I’ve only been here for 18 months. I really wanted to join Nationwide because I love its business model. I’m really happy here,” she told MailOnline.
Frontrunners for the position include Paul Thwaite, an executive who was appointed in July to replace Rose for an initial 12 months.
The Financial Times has also named Credit Suisse’s chief operations officer Francesca McDonagh, Lloyds Banking Group’s chief financial officer William Chalmers and former Natwest and HSBC CFO Ewen Stevenson as potential candidates.
Nationwide’s latest earnings showed a boost in payouts to members in the six months to the end of September as rising interest rates provided a lift to profits.
It warned that mortgage arrears were rising, albeit at a slower-than-expected pace.
