"We can confirm we are in discussions with Sainsbury’s Bank regarding the purchase of the mortgage book."
In September 2019, Sainsbury's Bank announced that it would no longer be accepting new mortgage applications.
The lender completed £1.1bn in mortgage lending in 2018 and has a loan book totalling £1.9bn.
Lloyds Banking Group is also rumoured to be considering the loan book acquisition, after purchasing Tesco Bank's residential mortgage portfolio for £3.8bn in September 2019.
A spokesperson for Nationwide said: “We can confirm we are in discussions with Sainsbury’s Bank regarding the purchase of the mortgage book.
“At the moment, this may or may not lead to a deal in the future. It’s too early to comment further on that.”
