As the chancellor unveils a restructuring programme for the publicly-owned banks that could see the return of some smaller businesses, the second Turner Review conference heard that not only large firms could pose systemic risk. Alistair Darling is widely expected to announce today that parts of the Lloyds Banking Group and RBS will be sold off to new owners in a deal believed to come at the behest of Brussels. Under the deal, Lloyds is likely to be forced to divest itself of TSB Scotland, Cheltenham & Gloucester and Intelligent Finance, its online bank. RBS is expected to have to sell NatWest branches in Scotland and its insurance businesses, which include Churchill, Direct Line and Green Flag. Press reports suggest that the TSB brand will be resurrected, as will Williams & Glyn's, the upmarket bank that operated in the 1980s and 90s.
Northern Rock is also expected to be split into a "good bank" — BankCo, which will be sold off to create a third new high street name, and a "bad bank",
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