ROYAL Bank of Scotland Group Plc's first-half profit are expected to rise in line with market expectations.

ROYAL Bank of Scotland Group, Britain’s second-largest bank, agreed to buy the Swiss private banking unit of HVB Group for 324.5 million, its second foreign acquisition move this week.

ROYAL Bank of Scotland Group, Denmark’s Elsam, and a group of buy-out firms made acquisitions totalling €5.7 billion in Europe’s busiest day for takeovers this year, benefiting advisers such as Merrill Lynch & Co and UBS.

Banking giant Royal Bank of Scotland today said it was buying Dublin-based mortgage lender First Active to merge with its Ulster Bank subsidiary.

London’s benchmark FTSE 100 Index edged higher today as leading shares took a lead from an overnight rebound on Wall Street.

The FTSE 100 Index completed another positive session today despite surrendering most of its earlier gains.

BROWN THOMAS owner Galen Weston’s $1 billion bid for Selfridges Plc, a luxury-goods retailer that competes with Harrods, may cost Canada’s second-richest man as little as $5 million of his own money.