Natixis to Bid New Century Adieu

France's fourth-largest bank, Natixis, plans on unloading $800 million in mortgage loans tied to beleaguered subprime lender New Century (NEWC Quote).

A Natixis spokeswoman in Paris was unable to comment, and a spokeswoman at New Century didn't immediately return a call for comment.

The move marks the second such subprime selloff by bank lenders looking to unload debt provided to the troubled mortgage lender. At the same time, it suggests that a bankruptcy may be imminent.

Natixis is conducting a public auction for loans provided to New Century subsidiaries NC Asset Holding LP, New Century Mortgage Corp., NC Capital Corp., Home 123 Corp. and New Century Credit Corp.

The French lender announced the auction Tuesday in an advertisement, similar to one taken out by Morgan Stanley (MS Quote) in The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal on Friday, where it disclosed plans to hawk $2.48 billion in New Century debt.

New Century has stopped making new loans and funding loans in process, as virtually all of its lenders have pulled its lines of credit.

Natixis was created in November from the merger of units of Groupe Caisse d'Epargne and Groupe Banque Populaire.

Irvine, Calif.-based New Century has stated publicly that it has no more than about $60 million to operate its business, and a number of states, including New Jersey and California, have forced it to cease and desist from providing residential loans.