Virgin Money has made "informal" contact with Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) over the sale of 300 of its branches, after the original deal with Santander collapsed.
The BBC said it understands Virgin in "very interested" in the deal, but emphasised it is early days. The deal between RBS and Santander collapsed on Friday, after the Spanish bank said it was taking too long to complete. It is thought incompatible IT systems were to blame. RBS and Santander had agreed a preliminary deal in August 2010 over the forced sale of 316 branches and thousands of small business accounts. The European Commission ordered the sale of the branches after RBS received a £45bn state bailout during the financial crisis.
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