ABN Turns Down RBS Spoiler Offer

Dutch bank ABN Amro has rebuffed a $24 billion offer for its American nephew LaSalle, from a consortium led by the Royal Bank of Scotland. ABN says the bid was no better than a previous one from Bank of America, and that the Scots had ignored "repeated requests for clarification" on the deal's financing and other issues.

The consortium's bid was part of a $100 billion takeover plan for all of ABN, competing with an earlier deal to be acquired by Barclays, the British bank. Either bid for ABM would be the world's biggest banking deal. The beleaguered Dutch bank has called an emergency shareholder meeting to weigh options. (More ABN AMRO stories.)