After buying up Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.'s North American operations at the peak of the financial crisis, British bank Barclays PLC is on the prowl for another major acquisition in the U.S., according to people close to the matter.

Barclays is hunting for a retail bank at a good price that would give it more deposits and build on the presence of Barclays Capital in the U.S., these people said. The bank, in response to potential changes in banking regulation, has designated an internal team to assess possible targets, these people said. Barclays is focused only on reconnaissance right now, and no deal is imminent, they said.