ABN Amro Rothschild, Goldman Sachs JB Were and UBS and have won the mandate to lead the Australian government's sale of its remaining 51.8% stake in Telstra, the country's largest telecoms company, for an expected $18.4bn (€15.6bn).

Credit Suisse First Boston, which co-led the two previous government sales in Telstra, and Macquarie Bank, which banking sources said had pitched, are not named as lead banks.