Acquisition

31 Jan 2007 16:07

Manchester Building Society31 January 2007 PRESS RELEASE Manchester Building Society announces the acquisition of Whiteaway Laidlaw BankLimited, a commercial bank offering banking facilities to small business andpersonal customers. The vendor, Home Retail Group, has disposed of the bank forcash consideration of approximately £5 million. Whilst the acquisition enables the Society to extend its range of servicesthrough the provision of banking facilities to its existing members, WhiteawayLaidlaw will also remain in operation as a separate entity. Emphasis will be onstrong promotion of the Whiteaway Laidlaw brand as a highly competitive mutualprovider of banking services to the small business sector. With both the Society and Whiteaway Laidlaw Manchester based, the acquisitionwill provide synergistic benefits to each and will reinforce the regional focusof both institutions towards developing a stronger customer base in the NorthWest. Footnote to Editor Manchester Building Society is the UK's 28th largest building society, withtotal assets at 31 December 2006 of £676 million. Contacts for Further Information Manchester Building Society: David Cowie, Chief Executive Tel: 0161 833 8888 Whiteaway Laidlaw Bank: John Mottershead, Managing Director Tel: 0161 273 3228 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange