Taxpayer-owned Royal Bank of Scotland says it will fight to win back customers’ trust after announcing a gigantic loss in 2013.

The bank was £8.2 billion in the red last year, largely due to the fall-out from historical malpractice. The bank is operationally profitable to the tune of about £2.5 billion.

In a statement alongside the results the bank said it would be smaller, simpler and smarter; and would put the needs of customers first.

Changes will include offering the same rates online and in-store and the same deals to new and existing customers.

And for small businesses it said it would put “hundreds of business bankers back on the high streets”, helping them open accounts and apply for loans.

All fees and charges will be explainable on “one side of A4”, it added.

The changes also include cutting costs, from a 73 per cent cost-to-income ratio to 55 per cent by 2017. In layman’s terms that means a £1 billion cut in operational spending.