This is a set back for the 84% taxpayer-owned bank, although RBS blamed the loss on changes to the “fair value” of its own debt.
The bank’s balance sheet appeared to be heading into the black after it reported a profit of £1.15bn for the previous quarter.
Market conditions will remain challenging, RBS said.
Chief executive Stephen Hester said the bank was making “good progress in our recovery”, but that highly volatile accounting charges could “obscure our underlying story”.
Since October 2008, the bank has announced 23,000 job losses worldwide, including 17,100 in the UK.
The government is not believed to be planning to sell its stake in RBS soon, hoping to make a larger profit as the bank continues to strengthen and unwilling to threaten the fragile banking recovery.
