Barclays Raises ABN Offer to $93.4 Billion With China, Singapore Funding

(Bloomberg) -- Barclays Plc, vying to buy ABN Amro
Holding NV in the biggest banking takeover, raised its offer to
67.5 billion euros ($93.4 billion) after securing investments
from the governments of China and Singapore.

Barclays's revised bid is worth 35.73 euros a share and
includes 37 percent cash, the London-based company said today,
4.3 percent more than its previous offer. The bid remains lower
than the 38.40 euro-a-share offer made last week by a trio of
banks led by Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

European Bank Stocks Advance, Led By ABN Amro; Saipem, Technip Decline

(Bloomberg) -- European bank stocks rose, led by ABN
Amro Holding NV after Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc sweetened
its 71.1 billion-euro ($98.1 billion) offer for the Dutch lender.

ABN Amro jumped the most in three months. Oil-services
companies paced declines in energy shares after UBS AG cut its
recommendations on Saipem SpA and Technip SA following their
``strong performance.'' BT Group Plc, the U.K.'s largest phone
company, and drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline Plc climbed after
brokerages lifted their recommendations on the shares.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

U.K. Stocks Gain, Led by Royal Bank of Scotland, Vodafone, Barclays

(Bloomberg) -- U.K. stocks advanced, led by
Vodafone Group Plc after UBS AG increased its price estimate for
shares of the world's largest mobile-phone company.

Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc rose after a Dutch court
cleared ABN Amro Holding NV's sale of its LaSalle Bank. The
ruling is a setback for a Royal Bank of Scotland-led bid for the
Amsterdam-based bank in the world's biggest banking takeover.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Rio Tinto May Borrow as Much as $40 Billion to Finance Alcan Acquisition

(Bloomberg) -- Rio Tinto Group will borrow as much
as $40 billion to finance the acquisition of aluminum producer
Alcan Inc., according to Moody's Investors Service.

Rio Tinto, the world's third-largest mining company, hired
Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc, Deutsche Bank AG, Credit Suisse
Group, and Societe Generale SA to finance the $38.1 billion deal,
the London-based company said today in a statement. The all-cash
offer for Montreal-based Alcan will be funded from banks, Moody's
said, which would make it the second-biggest loan in Europe.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Rio Tinto May Borrow as Much as $38 Billion to Finance Alcan Acquisition

(Bloomberg) -- Rio Tinto Group may borrow as much
as $38 billion, the second-biggest loan in Europe, to finance
the acquisition of aluminum producer Alcan Inc.

Rio Tinto, the world's third-largest mining company, hired
Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc, Deutsche Bank AG, Credit
Suisse Group, and Societe Generale SA to finance the deal, the
London-based company said today in a statement. The all-cash
offer for Montreal-based Alcan means the company may use bank
loans to finance the entire deal.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Royal Bank Buys Stake in Sempra Commodities Business for $1.35 Billion

(Bloomberg) -- Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc, the
U.K.'s second-biggest bank, will buy a majority stake in a Sempra
Energy unit for $1.35 billion, creating a joint venture that will
help the bank catch up with peers in commodities trading.

Royal Bank, based in Edinburgh, will provide capital and
credit, freeing up $1 billion at Sempra, the San Diego-based
company said in a statement today. Sempra will buy back as much
as $2 billion of its shares and raise its annual dividend 13
percent to $1.40 a share after closing the sale.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News