Valley National Bancorp has reportedly emerged as a forerunner to acquire the US arm of Bank Leumi Le-Israel.

Many buyers have shown interest in the Bank Leumi USA, Bloomberg reported citing people familiar with the sources.

The deal may or may not materialise as the lender could keep the unit, if the acquirer does not offer the desired price or might make it public, one of the sources told the publication.

Earlier, Bloomberg had reported that the deal could fetch $1bn for Bank Leumi.

Bank Leumi and Valley National Bancorp did not give any official confirmation on the matter.

The divestment of the US division is part of Bank Leumi’s investment agreement with minority shareholders Endicott Management and MSD Capital.

According to Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, as of 31 December 2020, the unit up for sale has had five branches, $7.2bn in assets and around $6bn in deposits.

In December 2019, New Jersey-based Valley National Bancorp acquired Oritani Financial in a deal valued at $740m.

Earlier this year, it was reported that HSBC will pull the plug on its retail banking operations in the US as part of its strategy to shift focus towards Asia and reduce costs.

HSBC, which has been struggling in the US market, has already closed 80 branches last year and is planning to sell or close the remaining 150 retail branches in the US.