Eying a bargain: Sir Richard Branson Sir Richard Branson wants to buy 316 branches from Royal Bank of Scotland – but at a knockdown price thought to be around £1billion less than was previously on the table. The entrepreneur’s Virgin Money has had informal contact with RBS about a possible purchase after the deal to sell the branches to Santander collapsed on Friday. Sources said Virgin Money, which tabled a bid in 2010 but lost out to the Spanish bank, would be ‘very interested if the price is right’. It is thought the Branson company has a price tag of around £650million in mind, far less than the £1.65billion Santander had been willing to pay and only half the ‘book value’ RBS places on the business.
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Billionaire's Virgin Money thought to have £650million budget for bid
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Consumer groups express fears new deal could cost taxpayers a fortune
Virgin Money
Virgin Money
Virgin Money
Yesterday consumer groups expressed fears that taxpayers could lose out if the branches, along with 1.8million personal and small business customers, are offloaded to @placeholder.