Barclays goes after Lehman's UK arms
BARCLAYS was set to continue its cherry picking of the assets of bankrupt Lehman Brothers today by launching a bid for its UK-based equities and investment banking business.
But it may face competition from Japanese banking giant Nomura and France’s BNP Paribas in a move that could save hundreds of jobs among Lehman’s 4,000-strong Canary Wharf workforce.
Lehman’s administrator, PricewaterhouseCoopers, is likely to tie up a deal this week before many of the American firm’s financiers leave for other jobs.
Barclays signalled its intention to cast its net wider for Lehman businesses after forking out £1billion last week for North American assets including Lehman’s New York headquarters.
A spokesman for Barclays refused to comment on a bid for Lehman’s UK operations. The equity division is highly regarded, having consistently made record profits in recent years.
A move by Barclays for Lehman’s UK asset management business is seen as less likely.
Barclays bolstered its balance sheet last week to the tune of £1.3billion, as a £600million injection by unnamed shareholders was followed by a £700million share placing with institutional investors.