Royal Bank of Scotland has received bids for its Greek ship finance business — with Credit Suisse and China Merchants among the suitors — according to Reuters.

Experts said the RBS operation was once worth up to $3 billion.

RBS was previously a leading lender in the global shipping industry.

Reuters quoted an unnamed source as saying: “RBS has tried to put this sale together for some time.

“In the past two quarters, conditions in shipping have got worse and that has had some effect on the portfolio.

“That will mean that there will have to be some price adjustment for whatever is on offer.”

RBS is still 73% owned by the UK government following its £45.5 billion bail out during the 2008 financial crisis.