Nigel Farage, a political leader in the UK who was a staunch supporter of Brexit, recently had his account canceled by Coutts, part of Natwest – ostensibly because his balance went below their minimum threshold. Following the loss of his account, Farage lambasted the bank for removing his account due to his political comments and abusing his right to free speech.
According to SkyNews, Farage claimed to have a document that proved that Coutts disappeared his account as they believed his values did not align with those of the bank. At first, Coutts disavowed the claims, but today, according to a letter seen by SkyNews, Coutts CEO has now backtracked via owner Natwest CEO Alison Rose, who issued the following statement:
Rose said:
I believe very strongly that freedom of expression and access to banking are fundamental to our society and it is absolutely not our policy to exit a customer on the basis of legally held political and personal views.”
Rose effectively confirmed that Farage was canceled due to his beliefs, uncovering bigotry at Coutts.
The dustup caused HM Treasury to state it may take action to limit punitive moves by financial institutions. UK Economic Secretary Andrew Griffith stated that freedom of speech is a “cornerstone of our democracy.”
In the past years, political beliefs have created stark divisions that have caused certain private firms, as well as some government officials, to seek to silence one side of a discussion in favor of another. At times, once firmly held beliefs have proven to be false, shining a harsh light on those who hold the power to control narratives. Regardless of your opinion of Farage, or any others, the ability to express an opinion publicly is vital for the success of a democracy. Financial services firms should be held to a higher standard of inclusivity of legally held opinions and not seek to punish individuals based on their political affiliations or ideological perspectives.