The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is considering a British government-backed plan to sell off more than 300 high street branches to satisfy EU competition authorities, the Financial Times said yesterday.
RBS, which is 70 percent owned by the taxpayer after it was saved from collapse by a government bailout last year, told the newspaper it was “working towards a solution with the European Commission.”
Officials close to the negotiations told the paper the plan was well advanced.
The plan hinges on the EU’s concerns that RBS has a 30 percent share of the small business banking market in Britain. Brussels wants to see RBS’ operations in the sector cut by 10 percent.
The Scottish bank could achieve this by disposing of its 312 RBS-branded branches in England and Wales, which mostly serve its 1 million small corporate customers.
The NatWest branch network, the group’s principal brand in England and Wales, would be unaffected by the proposals, the report said.
EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes’ term of office expires at the end of this month, but a deal is unlikely before then. The commission can however continue to take state aid decisions after that date.
The newspaper said RBS could be in a position to set out the conclusion of the negotiations by the second week of next month.
Last year, it recorded Britain’s biggest ever corporate loss of more than £24 billion (US$38 billion).
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