{"text":[[{"start":6.45,"text":"A shipping executive is suing Coutts over claims the UK private bank kept a dossier of inaccurate information about him that triggered a US investigation into his finances and led to his daughter being detained."}],[{"start":18.6,"text":"In the latest case related to “debanking”, Philip Adkins, the former chief executive of heavy-duty shipping company Red Box Energy Services, has brought a data protection lawsuit alleging the “false” records caused him “serious distress”."}],[{"start":33,"text":"NatWest-owned Coutts is defending the claim, noting UK and US authorities sanctioned entities connected with Red Box in 2024. The bank said in a legal filing that Adkins’ case was “speculative”. "}],[{"start":46.3,"text":"The case brings further scrutiny of Coutts’ customer due diligence practices after the bank decided in 2023 to close the accounts of Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, sparking a political storm and the departure of Peter Flavel, Coutts’ chief executive, and NatWest CEO Dame Alison Rose."}],[{"start":66.94999999999999,"text":"NatWest last year paid an undisclosed sum to Farage to settle the long-running dispute over his “debanking”."}],[{"start":73.69999999999999,"text":"Lawyers for the US-born Adkins said he had been a customer of Coutts for four decades before his account was frozen in 2024 and that he later discovered the bank held erroneous records about him."}],[{"start":86.1,"text":"The inaccuracies included that he had a net worth of £62mn, owned an apartment in Hong Kong, and lost half his wealth through a credit line with Goldman Sachs, according to the claim filed at the High Court in London."}],[{"start":98.55,"text":"His lawyers said the net worth figure was wrong, that he has never owned an apartment in Hong Kong and has never had a relationship with Goldman."}],[{"start":106.25,"text":"They alleged the US Department of Justice appeared to have pursued an investigation into his “tax obligations and compliance status” based on Coutts’ erroneous profile of him, and that as part of the probe his daughter was detained while she was in the US to visit friends."}],[{"start":120.75,"text":"“It is inexplicable why the defendant failed to check the accuracy of the false personal data with the claimant,” they said in the filing. "}],[{"start":128.45,"text":"But Coutts, which banks the UK’s royal family, denies sharing any data with US prosecutors and maintains it has complied with data protection laws."}],[{"start":137.39999999999998,"text":"Lawyers for Coutts said in a filing that the bank had to comply with anti-money laundering and sanctions obligations. The bank added Adkins had supplied the information himself, and that it was the ex-Red Box boss who “requested to close his accounts with Coutts and end his relationship with the bank” as a mortgage was due to expire."}],[{"start":158.39999999999998,"text":"Adkins is seeking compensation as well as legal costs and other expenses, plus a declaration that Coutts breached data protection laws and an order requiring it to delete or rectify the records."}],[{"start":177.79999999999998,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1790841743_1461.mp3"}