Barclays Reportedly to Buy Lehman Broker-Dealer Unit

British bank Barclays PLC has agreed to buy the broker-dealer portion of the bankrupt Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., several news reports said last night.

The deal will include Lehman's trading and investment banking businesses, and could save the jobs of some of the 10,000 people that worked for those parts of Lehman, reports said.

The deal was expected to be presented for bankruptcy court approval last night at 5 p.m., the Wall Street Journal reported. Barclays confirmed yesterday morning it was interested in buying parts of Lehman's business, according to the Associated Press.

The sides were expected to either announce the deal last night or this morning, the reports said.

The deal would not include Lehman's mortgage assets, the reports said. Lehman is still looking to sell its investment-management unit.

Barclays had been one of the companies rumored to be interested in accquiring parts of Lehman before talks collapsed this weekend. Without a deal, the 158-year old Lehman Brothers was forced to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Monday.

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