In 2019, the UK economy registered anaemic gross domestic product growth of about 1.4%, according to the Office for National Statistics. But for the banking sector, this environment was enough to keep the system as a whole ticking along in relatively good health.
In general, profitability levels remained steady, if unremarkable, while most banks continued to make the requisite investments to cut their operating costs. In terms of the UK’s best-performing banks, RBS tops the table of the 10 largest institutions. Its score of 6.35 out of a possible 10 points is buttressed by market-leading outcomes with respect to its profitability, operational efficiency and return on risk. The bank’s soundness ranking, where it takes eighth position, is its weakest outcome in terms of the constituent best-performing metrics.