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A commercial property loan portfolio is being sold to GE Real Estate for �2bn, while Dexia is paying about �2.2bn for B&B's housing association loan book.

B&B says that it is selling the assets to boost liquidity and to allow it to invest in more profitable areas.

The bank's shares have suffered in the past from rumours that it was having funding problems.

However, the bank stressed that the loan book sale was not a desperate move to gain funds.

"It enables us to improve returns by redirecting our capital and funding resources to take advantage of the significant opportunities that exist in the UK mortgage market today," the bank's chief executive Steven Crawshaw said.

B&B borrows some of the money that it lends to customers from the inter-bank lending markets that have largely shut down as part of the credit crunch.

Questionable value

The problems in the world's credit markets were set off by record default rates in the US sub-prime mortgage sector.

It turned out that the debt had been repackaged and sold to banks worldwide.

As some of the debt held by banks is of questionable value, it is hard for them to know how much of their reserves they can afford to lend to other banks and also whether other banks are creditworthy.

Dexia, which has bought the housing association loan book, is a Belgian company, which is a leader in European public sector financing.