The Hindu Business Line : Barclays to acquire Lehman Brothers US units for $1.75 bn

LONDON: UK banking giant Barclays Plc on Wednesday announced it will acquire financial services major Lehman Brothers' North American investment banking, capital markets operations and supporting infrastructure for $1.75 billion.

“Barclays will acquire trading assets with a current estimated value of £40 billion ($72 billion) and trading liabilities with a current estimated value of £38 billion ($68 billion) for a cash consideration of £0.14 billion pound ($250 million),'' it sai d in a statement.

Barclays would also acquire the New York headquarters of Lehman Brothers and its two data centres for an estimated £0.8 billion pound ($1.5 billion), taking the combined consideration for the deal to £1 billion pound ($1.75 billion), it added.

“The proposed acquisition of Lehman Brothers North American investment banking and capital market operations accelerates the execution of our strategy of diversification by geography and business in pursuit of profitable growth on behalf of our sharehold ers, in particular increasing the percentage of Barclays earnings sourced in North America,” Barclays Group Chief Executive Mr John Varley said.

This transaction delivers the strategic benefits of a combination with Lehman Brothers core franchise, whilst meeting Barclays strict financial criteria, and strengthening our capital ratios, Mr Varley added.

The Board of Barclays announced that the bank had agreed for the acquisition subject to US Court and relevant regulatory approvals. - PTI

Prev: Ashok Chawla takes over as DEA secretary

Business Line | NUS Index |