Citigroup, the huge financial organisation of which Citibank is a part, is being urged to break up by some union representatives.
A union president has written to the Citibank Chairman asking him to give some value back to the shareholders by breaking up the business into smaller parts. He does not want to see the supermarket approach of offering everything continued, preferring a more targeted approach.
Shares in Citigroup have fallen by over 60 percent in the last 12 months and it is felt that were the businesses to be split up so they stand on their own merits share prices in most of them would rise. Citibank is a part of all this and although there is no expectation of a shake up taking place it will still be interesting to see where the share price goes on the back of the discussion.
It is rumoured that the RBS could be ready to sell its stake in Tesco Finance, with a move expected within a few days.
Tesco Finance has RBS holding a 50 percent share of the business, which could be worth up to GBP950 million. This money would come in very handy for RBS, which has had a torrid time recently with the credit crunch denting its finances. This is just one of several sales that RBS appear to moving ahead with in their quest for GBP4 billion of extra money.
The management at Tesco Finance are unperturbed by the suggested sale since they have a very strong business position that would be attractive to any investor.
Alliance and Leicester shares leapt by almost 50 percent today as news of an agreement regarding the takeover of the bank by Santander was announced.
At a price of 317 pence per share the Alliance and Leicester is being valued at GBP1.33 billion, a price that the Spanish based buyer is happy to pay. The deal is based on trading one Santander share for three Alliance and Leicester ones, making it a very attractive proposition for shareholders and stimulating such fierce trading in them today.
The offer cannot go through without agreement by at least 75 percent of the Alliance and Leicester shareholders, though this is not expected to be an issue. If successful the bid would give Santander, with its other existing UK holdings, a share of the UK savings and unsecured personal loan markets in excess of 8 percent.