Getting the Abbey habit

Lloyds TSB used to be Europe’s best-regarded retail bank. But investors now think the £25bn group is vulnerable to a US takeover bid. Wells Fargo is the latest name doing the rounds. The takeover tittle-tattle may well come to nothing. But the shares’ reaction betrays wishful thinking. Lloyds has declined so badly that investors would probably welcome such a strange overture. Lloyds is in a similar situation to Abbey National when it was taken over by Spain’s Santander last year. Its glory days...