ABN Amro has moved to quash newspaper reports that it has handed a large IT outsourcing contract at its wholesale bank to troubled Dutch information technology vendor Getronics.
ABN Amro acted after shares in Getronic rose by 21% on the Euronext Amsterdam bourse this morning, following reports in a Dutch newspaper that the contract was in the bag.
The bank, which is the final stages of selecting a vendor to manage the computer applications and infrastructure at its wholesale bank, says it has yet to decide on the winning bidder.
The contract, which is said to be worth between EUR1.5 billion and EUR2 billion over seven years, will entail the transfer of 1000 ABN Amro employees to the outsourcer.
Yesterday, Getronics was forced to dismiss market rumours it was facing bankruptcy after its shares fell as much as 30% on concern about its ability to deal with its heavy debt. Getronics is due to report its first-half earnings statement tomorrow.