RBS agrees sale of Asia assets

Royal Bank of Scotland today agreed a deal worth $550m (€382m) to sell operations in six Asian countries.

The proposed sale to the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) is part of the drive by the part-nationalised bank to slim down its balance sheet and focus on a smaller number of key markets.

The deal includes the RBS retail, wealth and commercial businesses in Taiwan, Singapore, Indonesia and Hong Kong, and the institutional businesses in Taiwan, the Philippines and Vietnam.

RBS said the purchase price represented a $50m (€35m) premium on the book value of the businesses being sold.

The UK company said it remained in advanced discussions with bidders for the remaining assets it has decided to sell in Asia.

RBS has said Asia will remain a key market for the group, with operations in 11 markets in the region. The company’s shares rose 3% today.