Reform UK leader Nigel Farage attacks 'woke virus' in big companies after end of NatWest debanking battle

27 March 2025, 19:09 | Updated: 27 March 2025, 20:35

Nigel Farage has blamed a "woke virus" in big companies for his two-year debanking battle with NatWest.

Shortly after Sky News revealed the Reform UK leader has settled the dispute, Mr Farage said he was "caught in the crossfire" of identity politics.

City editor Mark Kleinman reported on Wednesday that a deal had been reached nearly two years after the closure of Mr Farage's accounts, which led to the resignation of the bank's boss.

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Nick Candy, Reform UK's treasurer, played a key role in resolving the dispute between the two sides during six hours of mediation talks held at a London law firm on Tuesday.

Under the deal, the bank has agreed to pay Mr Farage damages, while he is understood to have withdrawn a threat of potential civil and criminal proceedings against NatWest.

Mr Farage said: "The war with NatWest is finally over. I thank my friend Nick Candy for sorting that out for me."

The Reform UK leader refused to reveal details of the settlement or how much compensation he will receive, but reflected on the dispute when questioned about it by Sky News.

"I think a woke virus has gone through corporate America and corporate Britain," he said. "We have firms like BP pretending they're all about renewable energy rather than producing oil."

'Lunacies of DEI policy'

Mr Farage hit out at "the lunacies of DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) policy, of employing people on the basis of their colour, or their chosen sexuality". "I was caught in the crossfire," he said.

Claiming DEI was coming to an end, he added: "We're seeing the tide turning. You know, when even Mark Zuckerberg announces that he's axing the DEI department at Meta, you know that a big change is coming.

"And we're moving more towards a system based on meritocracy than based on identity."