LONDON—Criminal money laundering charges against British state-backed bank NatWest are linked to a separate case against 13 individuals based in cities across the country, prosecutors have told Reuters. Britain’s financial regulator, the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), started a criminal action against NatWest on Tuesday, making it the first bank to be charged under a 2007 money laundering law. The FCA accused NatWest of failing to monitor suspect activity by a client that deposited about £365 million ($506 million) in its accounts over five years, of which £264 million ($366 million) was in cash. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said in a statement to Reuters on Thursday that the FCA’s proceedings against NatWest involved the same accounts linked to the 13 individuals it has charged separately with money laundering offences. Reuters and other media reported on Tuesday that Fowler Oldfield, a gold dealership in Bradford that has since been liquidated, …