Linklaters has won a role advising Lloyds Banking Group on the sale of 632 of its UK branches.

The bank has been given until the end of 2013 to sell the branches by the European competition authorities, and put the branches to auction earlier this year.

NBNK Investments, which was set up last summer by figures including Lord Levene and Sir David Walker with the intention of making acquisitions in order to create a new retail bank, is the only formal bidder to date.

NBNK is thought to have offered around £1.5bn for the branches, and confirmed its bid at the end of September, while other names linked with a potential acquisition include The Co-Operative Group and Sun Capital.

Lloyds has instructed its longstanding corporate adviser Linklaters on the sale, with global head of corporate Jeremy Parr, the firm's relationship partner for Lloyds, taking the lead, alongside partners Matthew Bland (corporate) and Carson Welsh (capital markets).

Parr has previously worked with Lloyds on high-profile matters including its £12.2bn rescue takeover of the UK's then-largest mortgage lender HBOS. He also advised Lloyds in relation to the £17bn Government bailout Lloyds and HBOS received between them.

One magic circle corporate partner commented: "The offers on the table are lower than expected, which could be considered a sign that recent economic turbulence has further dented confidence in the domestic banking market."

It is unclear who is advising NBNK.

Earlier this year, Legal Week reported that Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer picked up a high-profile mandate advising on the sale of state-owned mortgage lender Northern Rock by UK Financial Investments, the body which manages the Government's stakes in UK banks.

Corporate partner Barry O'Brien, a longstanding adviser to the Newcastle-based lender's board, is leading the team advising Northern Rock, working alongside global head of finance Alan Newton. The sale is hoped to generate more than £1bn for the Treasury.