Banco Santander makes a bid for Royal Bank of Scotland’s Williams & Glyn

Banco Santander has made an offer to take over Royal Bank of Scotland’s Williams & Glyn business, according to sources, as part of a long-standing plan to grow its market share in Britain.

The move by Spain’s largest bank could end a costly seven-year process by RBS to offload the small business lender, a key EU condition of its taxpayer-funded rescue at the peak of the global financial crisis.

RBS has blamed the complexities of creating a standalone technology platform for the delays in selling Williams & Glyn, seen by some analysts as a major milestone in the lender’s road to recovery, return to full private ownership and restoration of dividends.