Lender Aldermore enters race for Co-op Bank

Target: Aldermore is in talks with investment bankers on the size and structure of the Co-operative Bank

Aldermore is the latest suitor to join the battle for The Co-operative Bank.

The mid-sized consumer and business lender, which is owned by South Africa’s FirstRand Group, is in talks with investment bankers on the size and structure of a potential takeover deal, according to Sky News.

Rival Shawbrook Group is understood to have approached The Co-Op Bank a month ago about a merger that valued it at around £800m.

Last week The Co-op Bank’s owners set an early October deadline for non-binding bids – kicking off a long-awaited sale process for the High Street bank. Sources suggested Aldermore plans to table a bid ahead of this deadline.

The Co-Op Bank more than quadrupled its profit in 2022 to £132.6m