Just in at 12:43 pm per WSJ (excerpt)…

LONDON — Barclays PLC was close to a deal to acquire a large chunk of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.’s U.S. operations for just under $2 billion, according to people familiar with the situation.

The deal, for now, would allow Barclays, the U.K.’s third-largest bank in terms of market value, to buy Lehman’s U.S. broker-dealer unit a day after parent Lehman Brothers Holdings filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Barclays had been in talks over the weekend to buy the entire firm before walking away because Barclays couldn’t obtain U.S. government support for Lehman’s $85 billion in souring assets or backing for Lehman’s balance sheet.

Under the parameters currently being discussed, however, Barclays potentially could leave behind Lehman’s troubled assets at the parent level, which is now going through a bankruptcy proceeding.

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Tags: Barlcays, Chapter 11, Lehman bankruptcy, Lehman Brothers