Barclays to pick select parts of Lehman for $1.75 billion

17 September 2008

The UK's third largest banking entity, Barclays plc, has confirmed that it has agreed to acquire assets of Lehman Brothers Holdings, mainly the North American investment banking and capital market operations of the bankrupt investment bank. Barclays will pay cash of around $250 million for this part of the acquisition. (See: Barclays in talks to acquire Lehman's securities business) 

Barclays will also acquire Lehman's New York headquarters, along with two data centres that have been not discounted as much, and are closer to their market value of about $1.5 billion.

All together, Barclays would pay around $1.75 billion.

 After having walked away from buying out of the entire Lehman Brothers over the weekend, the UK's third largest bank, Barclays Plc, yesterday said it was in negotiations to acquire "certain assets" of the US firm.

Lehman had said that it was looking to sell its broker-dealer operations, and had potential purchasers for its investment management division.

Barclays will now own Lehman's large-fixed income trading operations. It would also have avoided acquiring Lehman's substantial portfolio of toxic real estate assets that forced the investment banking firm into bankruptcy in the first place.