Spanish bank Santander Central Hispano, which has agreed a £8 billion sterling bid for UK bank Abbey National, is considering a stock market listing in London, according to financial sources.
The Financial Times reported that Santander was understood to be prepared to have a secondary listing in London if there was enough demand from Abbey shareholders.
Santander has its primary listing in Madrid, but a secondary listing would allow Abbey's retail investors to trade their Santander shares more easily through their UK stockbrokers, the report said.
Earlier this week, British bank HBOS said it was considering a counterbid for Abbey, although it cautioned that no decision had been made.
Santander representatives in Madrid declined to comment on the report.
