Metro Bank shares gain after deal to bolster finances

LONDON (Reuters) -Shares in Metro Bank jumped in early trading on Monday, after the embattled British lender struck a fundraising deal overnight to bolster its balance sheet after urgent talks over the weekend following volatile trading.

Metro announced a 325 million pound ($396 million) capital raise and 600 million pound debt refinancing on Sunday, in a deal that would hand majority shareholder control to its biggest investor, Colombian billionaire Jaime Gilinski.

Gary Greenwood, banking analyst at Shore Capital, said the deal appeared to secure the bank’s immediate future, but said it represented “a very painful rescue” as it entails a hit for both the bank’s shareholders and bondholders.

Metro Bank shares opened as much as 22% higher, and were last up 9% at 49.4 pence.

The lender had sought to shore up its finances after a string of setbacks in recent years, including accounting errors, leadership departures and delayed regulatory approval for key capital reliefs.

($1 = 0.8199 pounds)