Following a tax loss at businesses owned by Royal Bank of Scotland PLC in the first quarter, Dutch state-controlled bank ABN AMRO NV Monday posted a monstrous loss of 886 million euros - a dramatic contrast to the group's antecedent ABN Amro Holding NV's 3.6 billion euros net profit in the same quarter a year earlier.

The loss largely results from the company's 70-billion-euros `three-way' acquisition - by RBS, Spain's Banco Santander and Belgium's Fortis NV - going devastatingly off beam. The consortium had bought ABN AMRO in 2007; but after a crisis of confidence, the Dutch government took hold of Fortis' local operations - its interests in ABN AMRO inclusive - for 16.8 billion euros in October last year.

Both the series of transactions were so complicated that the process involving separation of the ABN AMRO businesses acquired by RBS from the businesses acquired by the Dutch state has still not been completed. Santander, however, has full control over the operations it acquired in Latin America.

However, on Monday, ABN AMRO said that the separation is `on track,' and would likely be finalized by the end of this year.

Post-separation, the new ABN AMRO Bank will be focused on Dutch commercial and consumer clients, overseas private clients, and international diamond and jewellery trade, while RBS NV will be part of RBS' international lending and transaction services.