$101B battle for ABN drawing to a close

LONDON (CNNMoney.com) -- The $101 billion battle for Dutch bank ABN Amro, the biggest banking buyout ever, is coming to a close, according to a published report.

The Wall Street Journal said a trio of banks led by Royal Bank of Scotland is expected to win enough support from ABN Amro (Charts) shareholders on Friday to close the deal.

The win would bring an end to the ABN takeover saga, which pitted British bank Barclays (Charts) against a consortium made up of Royal Bank of Scotland, Belgian-Dutch group Fortis and Spanish bank Santander.

The battle for ABN began in the spring, during the height of the merger boom. ABN and Barclays announced a deal in April and the group led by RBS quickly made a rival offer.

On Friday, Barclays withdrew its $84 billion takeover offer, paving the way for RBS to close the deal, according to the Associated Press.

ABN Amro Chief Executive Rijkman Groenink told employees in a memo that the purchase by the RBS-led group could close Oct. 19, the Journal reported.