Acquisition

Barclays PLC
11 April 2005

11 April, 2005

   BARCLAYS TO ACQUIRE A CONTROLLING INTEREST IN FIAT'S IVECO VEHICLE FINANCE
                                    BUSINESS

Barclays Asset and Sales Finance, the specialist asset backed lending provider
of the Barclays Group, has agreed to form a new company with Iveco SpA ('Iveco')
to provide commercial vehicle financing and leasing solutions to Iveco customers
in Europe, initially in the UK, Italy, France, Germany and Switzerland, with a
joint intention to commence business in other European countries.

Iveco will transfer certain subsidiaries of Iveco Finance to the new company and
Barclays will then acquire a 51% share and controlling stake in the company for
a consideration of £66.5m (€96.8m). The proposed transaction is conditional upon
necessary regulatory clearances.

This transaction will expand Barclays Asset and Sales Finance's commercial
vehicle expertise across Europe, by providing an opportunity to work with a
European commercial vehicle manufacturer which has leading market positions in
all important commercial vehicle segments in Western Europe. Barclays Asset and
Sales Finance already has a strong presence in many of Iveco's principal markets
and this will provide opportunities for further expansion of existing
operations, as well as the development of new markets. The transaction also
serves to accelerate the Barclays Group strategic aim of developing retail and
commercial banking activities in selected markets outside the UK.

Iveco Finance is the prime supplier of hire purchase, finance leasing,
instalment loans and contract hire solutions for Iveco commercial vehicle
operations in France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland and the UK.
As at the end of 2004 it had total receivables of £1.51bn (€2.2bn). The European
commercial vehicle financing market is expected to grow at over twice the rate
of Eurozone GDP over the medium term.

Stephen Price, Managing Director of Barclays Asset and Sales Finance, commented,
'This is a great opportunity, which combines the manufacturing strength, market
presence and scale of a leading European commercial vehicle manufacturer with
the scale and resources of a global financial services provider. It will
accelerate the development of Barclays Asset and Sales Finance business in
Europe by giving us a significant presence in a number of new markets plus the
ability to work with an acknowledged industry leader in the European commercial
vehicle sector'.

Paolo Monferino, Chief Executive Officer of Iveco said, 'This new company will
allow the Iveco Finance business to become even more competitive and will assist
us to provide even more innovative solutions to increasingly sophisticated
customer needs. It will enable an already successful business to be developed by
drawing on the balance sheet strength and asset finance expertise of Barclays'.

- ends -

Contact at Barclays:

Jo Thethi Tristan Lafford
Barclays Public Relations, Barclays PLC Barclays Investor Relations, Barclays
PLC
Tel: [phone] Tel: [phone]

Contact at Iveco:

Georgio Bertoldi
Iveco
Tel: : [phone]

About Barclays PLC

Barclays PLC is a major global financial services provider primarily offering
banking, investment banking and investment management services. Barclays is
present in over 60 countries and employs over 78,400 people worldwide. With over
300 years of history and expertise in banking, Barclays PLC has six major
divisions. UK Banking, delivers banking products and services to over 14 million
personal customers and 745,000 businesses. Barclaycard, is one of the leading
credit card businesses in Europe with 13.4 million credit card customers across
the world. Barclaycard now incorporates all of the Group's UK secured and card
lending products and expertise. Barclays Capital, the investment banking
division, provides corporate, institutional and government clients with
solutions to their financing and risk management needs. Barclays Global
Investors, one of the world's largest asset managers and a leading provider of
investment management products and services. Private Clients, Barclays wealth
management operation, with over 300,000 affluent and high net worth clients.
International Retail and Commercial Banking, the global retail and commercial
banking operation, with 2.2 million international clients in the Caribbean,
France, Spain, Portugal, Italy and Africa. For more information about Barclays
PLC, please visit www.barclays.com

About Barclays Asset and Sales Finance

Barclays Asset and Sales Finance (BA&SF) specialises in asset based lending and
works with a broad range of international technology, industrial equipment and
commercial companies, serving 31,000 business customers in the UK and Europe. BA
&SF also specialises in the factoring and invoice-discounting arena, providing
working capital management solutions The vendor business provides customised
finance programmes to help manufacturers, dealers and distributors of assets to
attract and retain profitable customers, increase sales and boost profitability.
Working in partnership with our vendors we deliver integrated sales and
marketing activity, provide training to their key staff and product and industry
knowledge. BA&SF has been acknowledged by Business Moneyfacts Magazine as the
'Best Leasing & Asset Finance Provider' in the UK since 2002. For reporting
purposes Barclays Asset and Sales Finance is included in UK Business Banking
division of Barclays PLC.

About Fiat SpA

Founded in 1899, Fiat is an industrial enterprise focused on the automotive
sector, serving customers in more than 190 countries around the world with an
annual turnover in excess of €47 billion. With some 162,000 employees in 109 R&D
centres and 192 plants worldwide, the Fiat Group is a global leader in the
production of passenger cars, agricultural and construction equipment,
industrial vehicles, production systems and automotive components.

About Iveco SpA

Iveco is a global company that produces a complete range of vehicles and
engines. It is dedicated to the transport world and to the satisfaction of its
customers, employing leading edge technologies and guaranteeing reliable
performance and levels of excellence in the quality of the products and services
it offers its customers all over the world. Iveco's strategy is to generate
profitable growth, concentrating on its Customers and markets, and strengthening
the technological content and competitiveness of its products. Transport Safety,
Environmental Care and Productivity on the road are key elements of its
strategy, together with technological innovation and lean enterprise. Iveco
manufactures and sells more than 160,000 commercial vehicles and 430,000 engines
in all parts of the world, for total revenues of about €9.3 billion. It operates
49 plants in 19 different countries and 15 Research and Development centres,
with 31,000 employees and 844 dealers.


This document contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of
Section 21E of the US Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and Section
27A of the US Securities Act of 1933, as amended, with respect to certain of the
Barclays Group's (the 'Group') plans and its current goals and expectations
relating to its future financial condition and performance, in particular with
respect to Barclays Asset and Sales Finance. These forward-looking statements
can be identified by the fact that they do not relate only to historical or
current facts. Forward-looking statements sometimes use words such as
'anticipate', 'target', 'expect', 'estimate', 'intend', 'plan', 'goal',
'believe', or other words of similar meaning. By their nature, forward-looking
statements involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to future events and
circumstances, including UK domestic and global economic and business
conditions, market related risks such as interest rate and exchange rate risks,
the policies and action of governmental and regulatory authorities, changes in
legislation and the impact of competition, a number of which are beyond the
Group's control. As a result, the Group's actual future results may differ
materially from the plans, goals and expectations set forth in the Group's
forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statements made by or on behalf
of Barclays speak only as of the date they are made. Barclays does not undertake
to up-date forward-looking statements to reflect any changes in Barclay's
expectations with regard thereto or any changes in events, conditions or
circumstances on which any such statement is based. The reader should, however,
consult any additional disclosures that Barclays has made or may make in
documents it has filed or may file with the US Securities and Exchange
commission, including its most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F.




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