SINGAPORE (Oct 25): Julius Baer Group, DBS Group Holdings and LGT Bank are considering bids for ABN AMRO Group NV&rsquo s private-banking business in Asia, people with knowledge of the matter said.

The banks have expressed interest in the ABN AMRO unit and will study more detailed information on its business, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the process is private. ABN AMRO hopes to announce a deal by year-end to minimize uncertainty for its private bankers and clients, the people said. 

The sale could fetch more than US$300 million ($418 million), based on the valuations of other recent deals, the people said. ABN AMRO is the 18th-largest private bank in Asia, with US$19 billion of assets under management in the region, according to a 2015 ranking by Asian Private Banker.

A sale by ABN AMRO, the state-controlled Dutch lender that relisted its stock last year, would follow similar retreats in the industry by other lenders including Barclays Plc and Societe Generale SA, who sold their wealth-management operations in Asia to local rivals. ABN AMRO has been working with a financial adviser to explore a sale of the business, people with knowledge of the matter said this month.

Representatives for ABN AMRO, Julius Baer, DBS and LGT Group declined to comment.