Credit rating agency Experian said this morning it has abandoned attempts to sell its price comparison site Pricegrabber.

Experian bought Pricegrabber for US$500m three years ago, but doesn’t believe bidders will be able to borrow enough money to buy the online business because of the credit crunch.

The credit rating agency also said it had agreed to sell its French transaction processing and outsourcing businesses. The disposals are expected to raise net proceeds of €150 million, which will be used to pay down debt.

"Our markets are in the midst of significant change, which we expect to last for some time," said Chief Executive Don Roberts.

Experian said this morning it will switch its focus to helping banks and retailers recover their money after the collapse in the housing market stunted its UK credit checking business.

However, Experian still posted a 13 per cent increase in sales this morning when announcing its first half results.

The shares declined 24.75p, or 7.5 per cent, to 305.25p in early trading.