MBNA Europe Bank Limited has acquired the $1.2 billion credit card portfolio of the UK's Alliance & Leicester (A&L).
As part of the agreement, MBNA will own A&L's credit card receivables and will manage the card programme under the A&L brand. MBNA will be responsible for all credit, customer service, customer assistance and operational decisions.
The acquisition includes a long-term agreement under which MBNA will market credit cards to A&L's 5.5 million customers through A&L's 310 branches in the UK. MBNA will manage the A&L card portfolio from its administrative and operations facilities in Chester, England.
Bruce Hammonds, chief executive officer of MBNA America Bank, says: "The quality of the A&L card portfolio is exceptional...At the same time, there's terrific potential for growing the portfolio, which we'll do by offering a wider range of products and services."
Richard Pym, group chief executive of Alliance & Leicester, states: "After a full review we have concluded that the best way to do this for our credit card customers going forward is through this arrangement with the world's leading independent credit card lender, MBNA."
Inclusive of the A&L portfolio, MBNA today has more than a 14 per cent market share of all credit card receivables in the United Kingdom and a 19 per cent share in Ireland.