National Australia Bank hopes to sell its British branches for as much as £2 billion, despite concerns that recent market falls might have made floating the business more difficult than had been first thought.
The Australian lender said yesterday that it would offer shares in the Clydesdale and Yorkshire banks at a price of between 175p and 235p, giving the division a valuation of between £1.5 billion and £2.1 billion — a discount on the book value of the operation.
NAB is aiming to sell a 25 per cent stake in the banks, with the remaining three quarters of its shares being handed to its investors on a pro-rata basis as part of the spin-off.
The initial public offering, which is expected to be one