General Electric plans to spin off the US consumer lending operations of its finance arm GE Capital, as the conglomerate moves to focus on its core industrial operations, a source said.

GE Capital nearly sank the whole company during the 2007-2009 financial crisis, and the company has been trying to shrink the division’s portfolio ever since.

An initial public offering of the consumer lending division, which issues store credit cards for 55 million Americans, could come early next year.

"A spin-off of GE's consumer business would be a significant positive for the company, as it would expedite its shift to industrial earnings solidly outgrowing GE Capital," said analyst William Blair. - Reuters