Advisers asked to tender for RBS, Lloyds shares

FINANCIAL advisers are being asked to tender for the sale of shares in partly taxpayer-owned Lloyds and Royal Bank of Scotland.

Financial advisers have been asked to tender for shares in Lloyds and RBS. Picture: PA

UK Financial Investments, the arm’s-length organisation that manages the government’s 39 per cent stake in Lloyds and 81 per cent holding in RBS, has asked on its website for investment banks to register interest by Monday and full proposals by 8 July.

UKFI is looking to appoint bookrunners for what are likely to be partial initial selldowns, as well as co-lead managers and capital markets and strategic advisers.

Analysts said lead investment banks to the sales could expect to earn fees of 2 to 3 per cent of the proceeds raised, with subordinate advisers getting about half of that.

It comes after Chancellor George Osborne said at his City Mansion House speech last week that the government was ready to start selling the shares it acquired in Lloyds at the time of the 2008 financial crash.

Expectations of an imminent sale have risen since Lloyds shares hit their 61.2p break-even price for the taxpayer in May. The RBS sell‑down is believed to be much farther off.

• Barclays may have to cut lending if it is forced to act quickly to meet a new financial strength target imposed by the Prudential Regulation Authority, the bank admitted yesterday.

The PRA told banks they needed to have a 3 per cent leverage ratio, and said Barclays fell short with 2.5 per cent.

Barclays chief executive Antony Jenkins said the bank would achieve the target by 2015, but that “an aggressive acceleration requirement from the PRA would require additional actions” including potentially squeezing lending, “which is something we want to avoid”.