LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's top shares held roughly steady in a shortened session on Friday, with RBS (L:RBS) and Barclays (L:BARC) heading in opposite directions following the latest developments in a U.S. probe into misselling of mortgage securities.
The FTSE 100 (FTSE) ended up 0.1 percent, and was up 0.8 percent for the week - a third successive week of gains.
The index hit its highest level in over two months.
Royal Bank of Scotland (L:RBS) closed up 1.4 percent, after the U.S. Department of Justice settled with Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn) with a smaller fine than had been originally proposed, prompting speculation it might also be lenient on RBS.
However, Barclays (L:BARC) fell 0.9 percent after it failed to agree a settlement with the DoJ. The department has launched a lawsuit against the British bank, but Barclays rejects its complaint.
The FTSE 100 traded just 22 percent of its 90-day average volume.
It only traded for half a day due to the upcoming Christmas holiday. Both Monday and Tuesday are UK market holidays.