Investec to raise up to US$165m in share issue

| Wednesday August 4, 2010 00:00

Banks around the world have been pressed to improve the amount and quality of their capital in order to prevent another financial crisis.

The coming Basel III reforms require banks to hold more common shares and retained earnings, regarded as the strongest capital buffer.

Investec, which is also listed in London, said it issued 22 million shares to existing shareholders at 475 pence each, bringing in 104.5 million pounds before commissions and expenses.

Shares of the bank tumbled in both London and Johannesburg trade after it said it planned the share issue. The issue represents 4.27 percent of the existing shares of the London-listed unit, and 2.79 percent of the shares of the entire group, Investec said in a statement.

The share issue was managed by Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Global equity markets staged a recovery in July, helped by optimism about US corporate earnings and receding worries about a debt crisis in Europe. London's FTSE 100 gained 6.9 percent for the month, its best monthly performance in exactly a year.(Reuters)