Barclays joins the bidding for Egg
In a surprise move it has been revealed that Barclays bank has expressed an interest in acquiring Citigroup's offshoot Egg which is rumoured to be for sale at around £400 million. This is an operation which was originally set up by Prudential and then sold to Citigroup back in 2007 for £575 million. However, the American giant has now decided that the online Egg operation does not form part of its core business in the future and the operation will be sold.
Egg is the most iconic figure in relation to online banking in the UK and initially it was one of the most successful operations. However, Prudential and Citicorp struggled to maintain this momentum and convert business from 2 million UK customers into significant operational profits. Quite why Barclays has taken such a shine to the operation so late in the day remains to be seen but there is no doubt that online banking is very much the future but it has become as competitive now as high-street banking in years gone by.
We should hear news regarding the sale of Egg in the short to medium term as potential bidders will need to be reviewed and their financial status confirmed. So who is your money on?
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