According to The Scotsman, Dutch authorities have confirmed that they would allow the Netherlands-based bank ABN Amro to be purchased by a rival bidder, with the intention to break up the group.
Cited in The Scotsman, Nout Wellink, president of the Dutch central bank, stated that it would not object in principle to a bid from a foreign player to purchase ABN Amro, even if its sole intention was to split the company and sell off parts.
UK finance group Barclays has recently been engaged in exclusive talks with ABN Amro over the deal and expects to keep the Dutch bank together. However, Royal Bank of Scotland has also been rumored to be part of a larger consortium expecting to launch a counter bid to break up the group, reported The Scotsman.
If Barclays and ABN Amro were to merge, the combined entity would be headquartered in the Netherlands and therefore would fall under Dutch regulation, reported Dutch News.