A report from City A.M., London's first free daily business newspaper, revealed that the TSB business of Lloyds had received approaches from interested private equity firms interested in its acquisition. Citing reports from the Sunday Telegraph, City A.M. said the interested companies included AnaCap, a New York-based investment firm and JC Flowers. Although the approaches were still in its initial stages, Lloyds' was said to be seriously considering them.

City A.M. also said the Co-op Bank's earlier offer to purchase the branches failed. The failure of the bank to buy TSB was due to its GBP 1.5 billion capital hole.

The European Commission had ordered Lloyds to sell TSB as a condition for its 2008 bailout agreement. TSB had said it had planned an initial public offering in 2014 in the London Stock Exchange. However, TSB Chief Antonio Horta-Osorio could also consider a trade sale, according to City A.M.

No confirmation regarding the approaches was made by Lloyds. However, a spokesperson told City A.M. through email, "We're progressing towards an initial public offering of TSB next year but will consider any offers that would provide greater certainty or value to our shareholders."