Sainsbury’s in talks to offload its Edinburgh-based banking arm to US private equity group Centerbridge Partners, it has been reported. A deal could be worth about £200 million and would end months of speculation that has linked the business with a number of potential suitors including NatWest (RBS) Group.
The supermarket chain kicked off an auction of the division a year ago and a sale would follow Tesco’s scaling back its banking interests. Tesco Bank, also based in Edinburgh, sold its mortgage book and recently announced that it was pulling out of the current account market.
It is thought Centerbridge wants to use Sainsbury’s Bank as a platform to buy other banking operations in the UK. The proposed deal is said to include allowing Centerbridge to use the Sainsbury’s brand under a licensing agreement.
