The majority of the shareholders suing Royal Bank of Scotland have indicated a willingness to settle the action, a judge has been told.

Mr Justice Hildyard has heard discussions between the claimants and the defendants are making significant progress.

He was informed of the position at a brief hearing at the High Court in London on Tuesday.

Jonathan Nash QC, for the claimants, told the judge: "The present position is that the majority of claimants have indicated their willingness to accept the latest offer from the defendant.

"There now appears to be a good prospect that within the course of today the remaining claimants, or nearly all, will confirm they will also agree in principle so as to bring a practical end to the proceedings."

The judge granted an agreed adjournment until Wednesday morning for talks to continue.

The 14-week civil case was due to begin on Monday but at the outset of the proceedings the judge gave the go-ahead for the start of the trial to be put back a day for settlement negotiations.

The judge, granting a further adjournment, said: "There is obvious interest in the court in seeking to facilitate a full and final settlement agreeable to the parties."

He pointed out it was also important the court's time was not was not taken up idly with adjournments and there had to be a "realistic timetable".

The judge said: "There will come a time when the claimants must simply realise that it is incumbent on them to make up their minds whether to continue with the litigation."

Mr Nash added that, barring "unforeseen developments", an adjournment of a day would be sufficient.

He also said if the trial had to go ahead the parties were confident the case could be heard within the allotted time.

The legal action centres on a rights issue overseen by former boss Fred Goodwin in April 2008 when RBS asked existing shareholders to pump £12bn into the bank after leading a consortium that spent £49bn on a takeover of Dutch lender ABN Amro.

Shareholders claimed they were left nursing hefty losses following the cash call after RBS shares plunged 90% and the UK Government was forced to step in when the deal turned toxic, bailing out the bank to the tune of £45.4bn.

Mr Goodwin, who was stripped of his knighthood in 2012, would be expected to defend his role in RBS's near-collapse should the case still go ahead.