London - Incoming Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) chairperson Howard Davies has defended his role in setting up the financial regulator that presided over the near meltdown of Britain's banking system.
Davies was a surprise appointment to succeed Philip Hampton as chairman of state-controlled RBS after the Financial Services Authority (FSA) he set up in the 1990s was widely criticised for inadequate supervision of banks in the run-up to the 2007-9 financial crisis. The FSA was subsequently disbanded.
Davies told Reuters the FSA was not a "light-touch" regulator and was not to blame for the failure of banks such as RBS, which cost taxpayers £45bn to rescue.