DUBLIN, Jan 29 (Reuters) - Permanent tsb (PTSB) has retained
investment bank Morgan Stanley to advise on a potential bid for
Ulster Bank's Irish small-to medium-sized business loan
portfolio if its larger rival decides to exit the market, the
Irish Times reported.
Ulster Bank, the Irish unit of Britain's NatWest Group
, is conducting a strategic review of its operations in
Ireland.
Citing unidentified sources, the Irish Times said it was not
clear how much of Ulster's SME franchise PTSB would consider
bidding for. Analysts at Davy Stockbrokers said Ulster Bank's
underlying SME portfolio amounted to about 2- 2.5 billion euros.
Mortgage lender PTSB's SME book stood at just 47
million euros at the end of 2019. However, Chief Executive
Eamonn Crowley said the bank wanted to increase its presence in
the business lending market.
A spokeswoman for PTSB, which is 75% owned by the Irish
state, declined to comment on the report.
In a note, the Davy analysts said an acquisition would have
a transformative impact on the earnings profile at PTSB, the
smallest of Ireland's three domestically-owned banks, and ease
concerns about an Ulster Bank Ireland exit from the market from
a competition perspective.
(Reporting by Padraic Halpin. Editing by Mark Potter)
Natwest (NWG)