The future of The Woolwich and Barclays' insurance operations is still unclear following news that the banks are poised to unite.

On a combined basis, the two operations have around £61m in fees and commission income, with most recent profits around the £43m mark.

Barclays said the two banks have yet to look at the insurance operations in detail.

However, a statement from The Woolwich said the banks plan to cut back their combined number of retail outlets from 2,100 to 2,000 over the coming three years. Barclays' offer values Woolwich at around 362p per share, and £5.5bn overall.


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