from todays Sydney Morning Heraldwho knows what this may mean...

from todays Sydney Morning Herald

who knows what this may mean for DUKE, if anything at all?


Break-up looms for RBS and Lloyds November 4, 2009 .

BRITAIN plans to break up the state-rescued Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds Banking Group in a move that will attend to European Union concerns about competition and pump about £30 billion ($55 billion) into the banks.

''To promote greater competition in UK banking and meet EU state aid rules, the banks will … be required to make divestments of significant parts of their businesses over the next four years,'' the Treasury said yesterday.

Under the plans the British Government will pump another £25.5 billion into RBS. And the bank said it would place £282 billion of high-risk debts into the Government's toxic asset insurance scheme. The Government's economic interest in RBS will increase to 84 per cent and its voting rights to 75 per cent as a result.

RBS said it would sell its branches in England and Wales, its NatWest branches in Scotland, its Churchill and Direct Line insurance division and parts of its investment banking.

Lloyds unveiled plans to raise at least £21 billion of new funds and pay a £2.5 billion fee for avoiding the state toxic asset plan. The Government said it would participate in the fund-raising and retain a 43 per cent stake in Lloyds.

''Lloyds will not participate in the [Asset Protection Scheme] and instead will raise additional private sector capital and pay a fee to the taxpayer for the implicit protection provided to date,'' the Treasury said.

Lloyds said it would offload its branches in Scotland, its Cheltenham & Gloucester branches and the Intelligent Finance online business.

The Treasury said it had reached agreement ''in principle'' with the European Commissioner for Competition over the restructuring.

? The Swiss bank UBS has reported a third-quarter loss of 564 million Swiss francs ($611 million).

Agence France-Presse