Lloyds chief apologises to staff over alleged affair

Lloyds Banking Group chief executive Antonio Horta-Osorio has apologised to the Edinburgh-based banking group’s staff for the damage caused to the firm as a result of reports concerning his personal life.

Rumours of an extra-marital affair have led to the Portuguese being accused of hypocrisy having been the driving force behind a code of conduct that said Lloyds employees must only do things that they would “be happy to tell my colleagues, family and friends about”.

In a memo to 75,000 staff, Mr Horta-Osorio addressed reports he had spent almost £4,000 while entertaining an alleged lover during a trip to Singapore.

The Sun newspaper had reported the incident, claiming that Mr Horta-Osório, 52, had had a tryst with Wendy Piatt, director-general of the Russell Group of leading research universities, during the business trip in June.

Addressing the reports, Mr Horta-Osorio’s note said: “My personal life is obviously a private matter as it is for anyone else. But I deeply regret being the cause of so much adverse publicity and the damage that has been done to the group’s reputation.

“I have been a strong advocate of expecting the highest professional standards from everyone at the bank, and that includes me.

“Having the highest professional standards raises the bar against which we are judged and as I have always said, we must recognise that mistakes will be made.”

The bank boss reiterated that he paid for his own personal expenses on the trip, confirming he did not break company policy.

The revelations come at a sensitive time for the group. In July, Mr Horta-Osorio announced that Lloyds, which is still partly owned by the UK Government, was cutting 3,000 jobs and shutting 200 branches as part of an efficiency drive.

Statutory first-half profits more than doubled in the first six months of the year, to £2.5 billion. Earlier this month, Bank of Scotland – part of the Lloyds group – announced 11 branches were to shut across the north-east.

The Treasury has been able to shrink its stake in Lloyds from 43 per cent to 9 per cent following its £25 billion bailout at the height of the financial crisis.

He has been tipped for another big job, possibly at HSBC, although it is unclear whether the latest revelations could undermine his chances of moving.