Business

British bank Lloyds completes record rights issue

British bank Lloyds completes record rights issue

By AFP

LONDON: State-rescued Lloyds Banking Group announced Monday that it had completed a record British rights issue totalling 13.5 billion pounds (15 billion euros, 22.4 billion dollars). "LBG announces the successful completion of the rights issue," it said in a statement. Lloyds, 43-percent-owned by the taxpayer after a massive government bailout, had earlier said shareholders had agreed to subscribe to around 95 percent of the sale of new shares. The group added in the latest statement that investors had now agreed to purchase the remainder in Britain's biggest-ever rights issue. The huge sale of new shares to existing investors, which closed last Friday, was aimed at boosting the troubled bank's capital levels. "I would like to thank our shareholders for their considerable support for our capital raising programme," LBG chief executive Eric Daniels said earlier Monday. "Our focus remains on delivering on our plans to become the UK's leading financial services company, which we believe will result in significant benefits for all our shareholders." LBG had offered shares at just 37 pence each. The stock had closed Friday at 56 pence. In early afternoon trade on the London stock market, LBG slid 0.58 percent to 55.64 pence. The FTSE 100 index of leading shares, on which the bank is listed, added 0.80 percent to 5,303.90 points.