ABN AMRO up for buy out

In the tug of war to buy out ABN AMRO bank in Netherlands, U.K.-based Barclays Bank and the consortium led by the Royal Bank of Scotland, need to finalise their bids by July 23, according to the Dutch market regulator Autoriteit Financiële Markten.

The Dutch Supreme Court yet has to clear whether the sale of ABN AMRO’s U.S. subsidiary LaSalle, to Bank of America, which is required as part of the merger, needs approval of the bank’s shareholders or not.

Barclays is keen on the merger, as ABM AMRO expressed interest to expand in Asia, Italy and Brazil. With the possibility of Barclays buying over ABN AMRO, the new bank headquartered in Amsterdam, will be regulated by the Dutch Central Bank and will have a British holding company and board of directors. ABM AMRO would still nominate the first chairman, while the first CEO would be decided by Barclays.

ABN AMRO, a prominent financial support to the international diamond industry, was valued at about $76 billion as of May, while Barclays Bank was at $86 billion. The Royal Bank of Scotland group also includes Fortis and Santander, a consortium of European banks.