Bank chief 'ready to waive bonus'

The chief executive is understood to be gearing up to decline a payout for 2009 after coming under pressure in the face of predicted hefty losses for the bank.

RBS, which is 84 per cent taxpayer owned after a number of bailouts, is expected to report a shortfall of around 5.3bn when it announces its results on Thursday.

Mr Hester’s decision not to take his bonus allocation comes after Barclays’ top bosses opted to waive their rights to payouts last week.

The RBS chief is in the midst of a five-year turnaround plan to restore the bank to health after taking on the job at the height of the financial crisis.

His remuneration package could reach 9.7m – which he has said even his parents think is too much – based on his efforts to restructure the bank.