Scotland divided on alternative HBOS bid
The intervention of Sir Peter Burt and George Mathewson in relation to the HBOS merger with Lloyds TSB has opened something of a chasm between opinions in the political, public and financial worlds. The situation has been complicated further by the suggestion that Bank of China has been looking at HBOS with a view to making a possible offer for the company.
The main concern now is that that a drawn out merger or takeover would divert attention from the underlying business of the group and may leave the company's finances in a worse situation than they are now. Opinion seems to be divided across the whole banking communities with regards to the future of HBOS and it will surely take some form of government intervention to confirm and stabilise the situation. Even though the Scottish figures that have intervened in the situation have the best interests of Scotland at heart, they could actually end up doing more harm than good.
Unfortunately it seems as though this situation is set to drag on for many more months yet, taking away vital management time from the underlying business of HBOS which could be better spent repairing and stabilising the underlying operations.
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