Metro Bank shareholders vote to back rescue deal

Metro Bank shareholders have voted to back a rescue deal worth nearly £1bn aimed at securing the bank's future.

The agreement to raise extra funds from investors and refinance debt was struck last month after speculation about Metro's financial position.

The deal includes £325m in new funding and the refinancing of £600m of debt.

Metro said shareholders had voted "overwhelmingly" in favour of the deal, with nearly 93% of votes cast backing the package.

"This is testament to their belief and confidence in the future of Metro Bank and proves there is a place in retail and business banking for our model of stores in major towns and cities, combined with online and mobile banking and great customer service," the bank said.

Under the deal, Colombian billionaire Jaime Gilinski Bacal will become Metro's controlling shareholder with a 53% stake. His firm, Spaldy Investments, is putting £102m into the bank.

After the refinancing deal was agreed last month, Metro's chief executive, Daniel Frumkin, said it marked "a new chapter" for the bank.

The shareholder vote was the final hurdle after bondholders - who are set to lose 40% of their investments - backed the plan in October.

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When it launched in 2010 Metro was the first new bank to open in the UK for more than a century.

It positioned itself as a so-called "challenger" bank to the big High Street names, and pledged to keep its branches open seven days a week.

The bank now has 2.7 million customers and holds about £15bn worth of deposits in 76 branches.

The lender has faced a number of challenges in recent years after an accounting scandal in 2019, which led to the departure of some top executives, including the bank's founder.

Metro's share price has slid from above £40 a share in 2018 to 41p by mid-afternoon on Monday, though that was up 5.3% on the day.

The bank's shares had slumped in early October after reports suggested it needed to raise money to shore up its finances. This led to several days of intense speculation about the bank's future, before the new financial package was agreed.

Metro Bank insisted all along that its finances were strong and it met all regulatory requirements.