STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS.L: Quote, Profile, Research) will axe jobs at ABN AMRO AAH.AS's markets business in the Nordic region after it bought part of the Dutch bank last year, a source with knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Friday.

An ABN official confirmed job cuts were being discussed, saying 40 cuts were being eyed in three Nordic centres, although the source gave a slightly higher figure.

"In total I believe this affects around 50 people," the source said.

ABN AMRO agreed last year to be bought by RBS, Santander (SAN.MC: Quote, Profile, Research) and Fortis (FOR.BR: Quote, Profile, Research), which split the Amsterdam-based bank's assets between them. RBS, as part of the deal, got ABN's investment bank.

ABN Amro spokeswoman Eva Reimers said around 40 job cuts in Stockholm, Copenhagen and Helsinki had been proposed.

"It's a proposal that's being discussed with the employees' committees. In Sweden around 20 people can be affected. We will keep a sales team that will offer a European equity product," Reimers said.