Bank of America may Bid for U.K. Bank Barclays

by Mike Bevel, CollectionIndustry.com

I don?t know about you ? but my winter?s wish has always been for some sort of huge superbank conglomerate. A U.S. bank with a British accent and a delightful whiff of Bilderberg, say.

Well, stop pinching me since I?m no longer dreaming: it looks like Bank of America, the largest retail bank in the U.S., is poised to make a bid for retail and investment-banking group Barclays, the largest U.K. credit card issuer. And, if we look at the math, Large + Large = Pretty Frakkin? Large. The deal, if it happens, would create the world?s biggest bank. Something the world has been waiting for, for I don?t know how long.

“Bank of America has previously indicated that the next phase of its expansion is to become a leading global commercial and investment bank. In order to achieve that goal, we believe Bank of America is very interested in acquiring Barclays,” Meryl Lynch said in a note to clients.

“We think Barclays is the perfect fit for Bank of America, given our understanding of Bank of America’s international aspirations,” Merrill Lynch said.

According to MarketWatch.com, Merrill Lynch believes Bank of America could generate savings of up to 1.5 billion pounds ($3 billion) from a deal, including through lower corporate and staff costs and the integration of credit-card divisions.

A takeover would see Bank of America easily outstrip Citigroup to become the biggest bank in the world.