ABN, Barclays deal expected ‘within days’ (UPDATE)

ABN Amro is not yet prepared to offer Fortis, Royal Bank of Scotland and Banco Santander the same level of information it has given Barclays which is currently negotiating to takeover the Dutch bank, reports today’s Financieele Dagblad. A deal with Barclays is expected within days, says the paper which bases its story on sources around the takeover battle which broke out at the weekend.


The Sunday Times reported that shareholders in ABN Amro could be offered a mixture of cash and shares in three other banks under a complicated €65bn bid being put together by Royal Bank of Scotland, Santander and Fortis.
The three banks would then carve up ABN Amro between them, the paper said. Fortis would get the Benelux banking operations.
Insiders told the paper the three banks have ruled out a conventional takeover bid. Instead ABN Amro shareholders would receive shares in each of the three bidding banks.
On Friday it emerged that the the three banks were joining forces in an effort to stop Barclay’s efforts to take over the Dutch financial services group. The three had written to ABN Amro asking it to open its books.
But analysts believe the RBS offer could lead to at least 10,000 job losses, something ABN Amro CEO Rijkman Groenink would be likely to oppose, the Sunday Times said.

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