UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
FORM 6-K
REPORT OF FOREIGN PRIVATE ISSUER PURSUANT TO RULE 13a-16 OR
15d-16
UNDER THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
February, 2026
Commission File Number 001-10306
NatWest Group plc
250 Bishopsgate,
London, EC2M 4AA
United Kingdom
(Address
of principal executive offices)
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual
reports under cover of Form 20-F or Form 40-F.
The
following information was issued as Company announcements in
London, England and is furnished pursuant to General Instruction B
to the General Instructions to Form 6-K:
NatWest Group plc
9 February 2026
This announcement contains inside information
9 February 2026
NatWest Group announces the acquisition of Evelyn Partners and a
£750m share buyback
NatWest Group plc ("NatWest Group") is pleased to announce that it
has reached an agreement to acquire Evelyn Partners from funds
advised by Permira and Warburg Pincus for £2.7 billion
enterprise value (the "Transaction"). The Transaction creates the
UK's leading Private Banking and Wealth Management business
("PBWM"), transforming NatWest Group's savings and investment
offering for its 20 million customers. It accelerates delivery of
NatWest Group's strategy, further diversifying income by
increasing fee income by c.20% pre-revenue synergies. It also
increases NatWest Group's exposure to a high growth, capital light
segment, with PBWM becoming c.20% of group customer assets and
liabilities. NatWest Group is also announcing a share buyback of
£750 million, continuing its strong track record of capital
return to shareholders.
Commenting on the acquisition, Paul Thwaite, Chief Executive of
NatWest Group, said:
"Bringing together these two leading businesses creates a unique
opportunity to provide financial planning, savings and investment
services to more families and people across the UK. We look forward
to welcoming our new clients and working with our colleagues at
Evelyn Partners to transform the services our 20 million customers
across the Group can expect from us.
At a time when the benefits of saving and investing are
increasingly part of the national conversation, we can help
customers to make more of their money through a broader range of
services, as well as helping to drive growth and investment across
the economy.
This transaction creates the UK's leading Private Banking and
Wealth Management business, delivering the scale and capabilities
needed to succeed in a market with significant growth potential. It
accelerates delivery of NatWest Group's strategy and positions us
to realise our longer-term ambitions.
This represents a strategically and
financially compelling use of capital, enhancing income
diversification and strengthening returns in a
high-growth segment, to deliver sustainable
long-term value creation."
Paul Geddes, Chief Executive of Evelyn Partners,
added:
"Evelyn Partners is a leading UK wealth manager with more than 180
years of heritage. We are proud to have grown to £69 billion
of assets under management, under the stewardship of Permira,
investors in the business since 2014, and Warburg Pincus, a
minority investor since 2020.
We are delighted to join NatWest Group, which marks an exciting new
chapter for Evelyn Partners. We both have a long-standing history
as highly regarded wealth managers with a client-centric
culture.
Together, we have the scale, resources, and shared vision to
provide unparalleled service to our clients. We look forward to
working together to build on our success and drive future
growth."
Evelyn Partners is a leading UK wealth manager with more than 180
years of heritage overseeing £69 billion of Assets Under
Management and Administration ("AUMA"). Evelyn Partners offers an
integrated wealth management proposition spanning financial
planning, discretionary investment management and its
direct-to-consumer platform BestInvest.
Evelyn Partners is led by a high-calibre management team with a
proven track record of delivery, demonstrated by a compound annual
growth rate in AUMA in excess of 7%. Its fully integrated model,
combining approximately 270 financial planners and 325 investment
managers, supports deep client relationships and superior client
outcomes.
Evelyn Partners generated full year 2025 EBITDA of £179m,
meaning that the transaction values Evelyn Partners at the
equivalent of 9.7x 2025 EV to EBITDA multiple, including target
run-rate cost synergies.
The Transaction brings together two established institutions with a
shared commitment to supporting clients at every stage of their
lives, under the leadership of Emma Crystal, Chief Executive
PBWM.
By combining Evelyn Partners' £69 billion of AUMA with NatWest
Group's £59 billion brings total AUMA to £127 billion and
total Customer Assets and Liabilities to £188
billion.
NatWest Group expects the combination of Evelyn Partners with its
existing PBWM business to create material shareholder value,
including estimated annual run-rate cost synergies of c.£100
million, equivalent to around 10% of the combined PBWM cost base,
with costs to achieve of c.£150 million.
NatWest Group also intends to deliver significant revenue synergies
through bringing Evelyn Partners' leading financial planning and
investment management solutions together with NatWest Group's full
suite of banking and wealth management solutions to our 20 million
customers.
The Transaction is expected to be accretive to NatWest Group's
growth and its Return on Tangible Equity in the first year of
ownership and to deliver returns greater than generated through a
share buyback.
The Transaction will be funded from existing resources and is
expected to reduce NatWest Group's CET1 ratio by c.130 basis
points.
The transaction will strengthen NatWest Group's capital generation
and it will remain well-capitalised. Following the £750
million share buyback announced today, NatWest Group expects its
next share buyback announcement to be at its H1 2027
results.
The ordinary dividend payout ratio of around 50% of attributable
profits remains unchanged.
The Transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals and is
expected to close in the summer of 2026.
Ardea Partners International LLP and BofA Securities served as
joint lead financial advisers to NatWest. UBS also acted as a
financial adviser to NatWest.
Investor Conference Call and Information
NatWest Group CEO Paul Thwaite and CFO Katie Murray will host a
call for analysts and investors at 8am (GMT) on Monday 9th
February.
The update will be hosted via Zoom. Zoom Meeting ID: 980 9474
7189
Please register to join the event via the link:
https://natwest-events.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_R6GyhY-rRt6gju-gRHqybQ
United Kingdom: +44 203 481 5240
New York: +1 646 558 8656
International numbers
Additional information
1.
Completion of the Transaction is subject to the satisfaction of
customary regulatory approvals. The timing of the satisfaction of
the conditions is uncertain, given the involvement of third
parties, but it is currently expected that completion will occur in
the summer of 2026.
2.
Evelyn Partners' full year 2025 results include Operating Income of
£509m, Costs of £330m, EBITDA of £179m, AUMA of
£68.6bn and Net New Money of £1.6bn. Evelyn Partners AUMA
CAGR of >7% is across 2023-25.
3.
NatWest Group's Private Banking & Wealth Management business
Customer Assets and Liabilities, including Assets under Management
and Administration are as at 31 December 2025.
4.
The combined fee income of NatWest Group's Private Banking &
Wealth Management business and Evelyn Partners is for the full year
2025.
5.
The combined cost base of NatWest Group's Private Banking &
Wealth Management business and Evelyn Partners is for the full year
2025.
6.
The CET1 ratio impact of c.130 basis points is based on the capital
position at 31 December 2026, proforma for RWA on 1 January
2027.
7.
Financial information is unaudited.
For further information, please contact:
Investor Relations
Claire Kane
Director of Investor Relations, NatWest Group
+44 (0) 20 7672 1758
Media Relations
+44 (0) 131 523 4205
Legal Entity Identifiers
NatWest Group plc: 2138005O9XJIJN4JPN90
National Westminster Bank plc: 213800IBT39XQ9C4CP71
This announcement contains information that qualified or may have
qualified as inside information for NatWest Group, for the purposes
of Article 7 of the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) 596/2014 (MAR) as
it forms part of domestic law by virtue of the European Union
(Withdrawal) Act 2018 for NatWest Group. This announcement is made
by Claire Kane, Director of Investor Relations for NatWest Group.
Upon the publication of this announcement via a regulatory
information service, this inside information is now considered to
be in the public domain
Disclaimer
Merrill Lynch International ("BofA Securities"), which is
authorised in the United Kingdom by the Prudential Regulation
Authority and regulated in the United Kingdom by the Financial
Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority, is
acting for NatWest Group and no one else in connection with the
Transaction and shall not be responsible to anyone other than
NatWest Group for providing the protections afforded to clients of
BofA Securities or its affiliates, nor for providing advice in
connection with the Transaction or any other matter referred to
herein.
UBS AG London Branch is authorised and regulated by the Financial
Market Supervisory Authority in Switzerland. It is authorised by
the Prudential Regulation Authority and subject to regulation by
the Financial Conduct Authority and limited regulation by the
Prudential Regulation Authority in the United Kingdom. UBS AG
London Branch is acting as corporate broker and financial adviser
to NatWest Group and no one else in connection with the
Transaction. In connection with such matters, UBS AG London Branch
will not regard any other person as its client, nor will it be
responsible to any other person for providing the protections
afforded to its clients or for providing advice in relation to the
Transaction, the contents of this announcement or any other matter
referred to herein.
Forward-looking statements
This announcement may include forward-looking statements within the
meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform
Act of 1995, such as statements with respect to NatWest Group's
financial condition, results of operations and business, including
its strategic priorities, financial, investment and capital
targets, and climate and sustainability related targets,
commitments and ambitions described herein. Statements that are not
historical facts, including statements about NatWest Group's
beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Words,
such as 'expect', 'estimate', 'project', 'anticipate', 'commit',
'believe', 'should', 'intend', 'will', 'plan', 'could', 'target',
'goal', 'objective', 'may', 'outlook', 'prospects' and similar
expressions or variations on these expressions are intended to
identify forward-looking statements. In particular, this
announcement may include forward-looking statements relating, but
not limited to: cost savings, revenues and/or cost synergies, ROIC,
fee income, capital generation, share buyback, NatWest Group's
outlook, guidance and targets (including in relation to RoTE, total
income, other operating expenses, loan impairment rate, CET1 ratio,
RWA levels, and payment of dividends), its financial position,
profitability and financial performance, the implementation of its
strategy, its access to adequate sources of liquidity and funding,
its regulatory capital position and related requirements, its
impairment losses and credit exposures under certain specified
scenarios, substantial regulation and oversight, ongoing legal,
regulatory and governmental actions and
investigations. Forward-looking statements are subject to a
number of risks and uncertainties that might cause actual results
and performance to differ materially from any expected future
results or performance expressed or implied by the forward-looking
statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to differences
in current expectations include, but are not limited to, future
growth initiatives (including acquisitions, joint ventures and
strategic partnerships), the outcome of legal, regulatory and
governmental actions and investigations, the level and extent of
future impairments and write-downs, legislative, political, fiscal
and regulatory developments, accounting standards, competitive
conditions, technological developments such as artificial
intelligence, interest and exchange rate fluctuations, general
economic and political conditions and uncertainties, exposure to
third party risk, operational risk, conduct risk, cyber, data and
IT risk, financial crime risk, key person risk and credit rating
risk and the impact of climate and sustainability-related risks and
the transitioning to a net zero economy. These and other factors,
risks and uncertainties that may impact any forward-looking
statement or NatWest Group's actual results are discussed in
NatWest Group's 2024 Annual Report and Accounts on Form 20-F,
NatWest Group's Interim Management Statement for Q1, H1 and Q3 2025
on Form 6-K, and its other public filings. The forward-looking
statements contained in this announcement speak only as of the date
of this announcement and NatWest Group does not assume or undertake
any obligation or responsibility to update any of the
forward-looking statements contained in this announcement, whether
as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except
to the extent legally required.
ENDS
SIGNATURE
Pursuant
to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the
registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf
by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
|
|
|
|
NatWest Group plc
(Registrant)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Date:
|
09
February 2026
|
|
|
By:
|
/s/
Mark Stevens
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Name:
|
Mark
Stevens
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Title:
|
Assistant
Secretary
|
|