Royal Bank of Canada has emerged as a potential bidder for Scottish Widows Investment Partnership, the asset management arm of insurance group Scottish Widows, owned by Lloyds Banking Group, according to three sources familiar to the situation.

It is unclear how far the acquisition process has progressed, but one source familiar with RBC's strategy said he knew it was interested in bidding. Another said: "A deal would make a lot of sense for RBC." A third added that RBC had been looking for an acquisition for some time.