HSBC Rail for sale again?

02/02/2010

HSBC is going to have another crack at selling its rail leasing arm, according to news stories doing the rounds. It has tried to sell the division at least twice before but failed to attract sufficient interest, although some felt it had been slow off the mark, and that earlier sales of the other ROSCOs had satisfied what demand there was.

Oddly, for an unsubstantiated story, there is a fair amount of detail being put forward, such as that the sale is being handled by Rothschild, and that the price could be around £1.7 billion. Not surprisingly, HSBC wasn't immediately available to comment, but if there is something in the story then it may well be a situation where buying consortia are currently being formed, with possibly even a seller-finance package being fashioned, and a fuller picture could emerge shortly.

Back