RBS seeking to offload vehicle leasing business

14th Jun 2011 11:28

The slow process of weaning the British banking sector off government-backed life-support appears to have taken a new twist.Reports suggest Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is in talks to sell its vehicle leasing business to General Electric, the American super-conglomerate.The name of the division under discussion is Lombard Vehicle Management, one of the largest vehicle leasing companies in the UK, with around 80,000 cars and vans in its fleet. GE Capital, a subsidiary of General Electric, is one of the biggest fleet operators in the world, with a reported 1.5m vehicles globally. The GE Capital UK fleet is just over 45,000.No details were available regarding the likely sale price, and neither RBS or General Electric have confirmed that a deal is in the offing, though a spokesman for RBS did say: "RBS continues to explore options for the future of its Lombard Vehicle Management business as part of the strategic plan announced in 2009 to return RBS to standalone financial strength."RBS has been engaged in a systematic sale of non-core assets as it seeks to raise funds to pay off the £45.5bn in government money that it received during the financial crisis of 2008.BS