NAB hunts for strategic advisor for deal
(8 January 2010 – UK) National Australia Bank is looking to increase it presence in the United Kingdom with a planned buyout of state-owned UK bank Northern Rock.
According to London press reports, NAB has interviewed four investment banks in its efforts to find a strategic advisor to steer its bid for the troubled deposit taker.
The British government will sell the bank’s branches with clean balance sheets by separating the bad loans from its performing assets.
The sale, expected to be completed by the end of 2010, will also include the banks £20 billion (A$35.7 billion) deposit book.
The Guardian reported that the government is keen to get the bank off its books as quickly as possible if it can achieve a reasonable price for the restructured entity.
While the Melbourne based bank has not commented on the matter, last month NAB’s chief executive officer, Cameron Clyne, confirmed that the bank was considering several opportunities within the British banking sector, however Mr Clyne would not stipulate whether the bank would be a buyer or seller of assets.
Mr Clyne said that he could advise shareholders that the bank had been approached by a number of players in the UK market to see how NAB could work with them to participate in consolidation.
These approaches indicate that in the group’s Clydesdale and Yorkshire banks, there are high quality assets that are on an attractive platform for participation in UK market developments, Mr Clyne added.
An analyst for Fat Prophets, Colin Whitehead, said that while British businesses have been poor performers for NAB, he did not believe that the bank would be a seller in the current environment because it would not receive appropriate prices for its business.
The British government will sell the bank’s branches with clean balance sheets by separating the bad loans from its performing assets.
The sale, expected to be completed by the end of 2010, will also include the banks £20 billion (A$35.7 billion) deposit book.
The Guardian reported that the government is keen to get the bank off its books as quickly as possible if it can achieve a reasonable price for the restructured entity.
While the Melbourne based bank has not commented on the matter, last month NAB’s chief executive officer, Cameron Clyne, confirmed that the bank was considering several opportunities within the British banking sector, however Mr Clyne would not stipulate whether the bank would be a buyer or seller of assets.
Mr Clyne said that he could advise shareholders that the bank had been approached by a number of players in the UK market to see how NAB could work with them to participate in consolidation.
These approaches indicate that in the group’s Clydesdale and Yorkshire banks, there are high quality assets that are on an attractive platform for participation in UK market developments, Mr Clyne added.
An analyst for Fat Prophets, Colin Whitehead, said that while British businesses have been poor performers for NAB, he did not believe that the bank would be a seller in the current environment because it would not receive appropriate prices for its business.
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