Barclays could be poised to swoop on one of Spain's troubled regional banks in a multi-billion pound rescue deal, according to reports.
Bob Diamond, the bank's chief executive, flew to Madrid last Tuesday to meet Spain's prime minister, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero. The Sunday Times understands that Diamond asked Zapatero whether the Spanish government would be willing to offer guarantees to Barclays if it volunteered to take over one of its struggling lenders. Spain's regional banks - known as cajas - account for about half the country's banking system. according to The Sunday Times. Together they lent about €500bn (£430bn) to Spain's property developers, fuelling a boom that went wrong. In Spain, fears for the he...
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