Nationwide’s Dominic West ad prompts complaint from rival

Watchdog receives complaint, reportedly from Santander UK, that advert paints misleading picture of bank branch closures

Dominic West's portrayal of an arrogant, smoothie-drinking, branch-closing banker has landed Nationwide in potentially hot water, with the building society now facing a formal complaint over its TV advert from a rival lender.

Santander UK is understood to have lodged a complaint with the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) over the television commercial, on the basis that it discredits and denigrates" Nationwide's rivals and paints a misleading picture about bank branch closures.