Egg failed to crack the French market

Prudential, which owns 79% of Egg, announced in January that it was seeking to sell its stake in the firm.

But Egg said Prudential had told it that no potential buyers had "the appetite for the investment required to deliver the French business plan".

Egg said the closure of the French unit - which has never made a profit - would cost it about �113m (170m euros).

Un oeuf is un oeuf

Egg's French business has struggled ever since it launched its La Carte Egg credit card in 2002, following the purchase of French internet bank Zebank.

Customer numbers failed to meet expectations, forcing Egg to almost double its investment budget and delay a target for breaking even by a year to 2005.

In October last year Egg said it was seeking a joint venture partner in France to help develop the business.

But this search for a partner was superseded by Prudential's announcement in January that it was looking for a buyer for its Egg stake.

"Following the slow start we experienced in France, we have been clear that Egg is not prepared to make the level of investment on a stand-alone basis that our revised plan shows the business needs for it to be successful," said Egg chief executive Paul Gratton.

In a statement, Prudential said it was still in talks over the sale of its Egg shareholding.