Jones Lang LaSalle and CB Richard Ellis poised to land contract as bank tries to save £1.5bn
Jennifer Rigby, Property Week – 5 June 2009
Lloyds Banking Group will close up to 1,000 branches and consolidate its regional office hubs in a bid to save £1.5bn in operating costs. The closures form part of a new UK property strategy set to be implemented this week.
The bank has finalised the strategy following Lloyds TSB’s £12.2bn takeover of HBOS in January. It is due to appoint property advisers today to lead the rationalisation.
Jones Lang LaSalle and CB Richard Ellis are thought to be the two firms in the running for the huge contract, which could be split.
If this is the case, Jones Lang Lasalle would be more likely to advise on the retail element – the branch network – and CB Richard Ellis would advise on the offices.
Property Week can reveal that the new strategy would involve the closure of the equivalent of a branch a day for the next three years – around a third of its branch network.
Lloyds had 1,900 branches and HBOS had 1,100 branches at the time of the takeover.
Lloyds will also consider consolidating its eight UK office hubs, in London, Bristol, Birmingham, Manchester, Edinburgh, Cardiff, Leeds and Halifax, and explore efficiencies across the rest of the office portfolio.
