Barclays PLC (LSE:BARC) has re-started talks with Brookfield about a sale of a stake in the merchants section of its payments business to the Canadian fund manager according to Sky News.
The UK bank, which reports third-quarter numbers on Thursday, is looking at divesting a majority stake having failed to sell the whole business earlier in the year.
According to the report, Brookfield would pay costs associated with growing the business similar to a farm-in rather than paying an up-front sum for the stake.
No details of any value were indicated though the numbers mentioned previously have ranged from US$2.5 billion at the top end to around US$800 million at the bottom.
A Barclays spokesperson said: "As we confirmed at our February investor update, we are exploring several options for investment in our market-leading merchant acquiring business, including strategic partnerships.
"We will provide any further updates in due course."
In its third quarter, UBS forecasts Barclays to announce underlying profits of £1.87 billion and a CET1 ratio of 13.7%.
“We expect a key focus on UK hedge tailwinds, investment banking revenue momentum, US consumer credit quality and CET1 build."