U.K. Treasury Says Independent Scotland Couldn’t Aid Banks

An independent Scotland would have a banking system too big to save in a crisis and may lack the resources to compensate depositors, the Treasury said in a study into the economic implications of a U.K. breakup.

Scotland would have banks with assets worth 1,254 percent of gross domestic product, higher than Cyprus and Iceland before their financial crises, the Treasury said. Taxpayers would each have 65,000 pounds ($98,670) of potential liabilities in a bailout, versus 30,000 pounds while the country remains in the U.K. An independent state would also be less able to guarantee deposits and stand behind private pensions, it said.