Blackstone and Apollo interested in Northern Rock: WSJ

Customers queue to enter a branch of Northern Rock in Kingston, Surrey, southern England, September 17, 2007. The Blackstone Group and Apollo Management each expressed interest last week in stricken mortgage bank Northern Rock, the Wall Street Journal reported on its Web site on Sunday, citing unnamed sources.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Blackstone Group (BX.N) and Apollo Management each expressed interest last week in stricken mortgage bank Northern Rock NRK.L, the Wall Street Journal reported on its Web site on Sunday, citing unnamed sources.

A Blackstone Group spokesman declined to comment on the matter and Apollo could not immediately be reached for comment.

Several bidders have expressed an interest in Northern Rock after its troubles in the wholesale funding market escalated last month, forcing the Bank of England to extend an emergency loan facility.

Last week Reuters reported that Northern Rock's advisors were in talks with U.S. buyout firm JC Flowers & Co. over a rescue bid and that U.S. firm Cerberus Capital Management was also considering a move.

According to weekend newspaper reports, U.S. investment bank Citigroup (C.N) is planning to help keep Northern Rock independent by arranging a consortium of bidders to bail it out or by directly offering it a loan.