Lloyds Banking Group continues to divest non-strategic businesses. The British institute has sold to a group of buyers which also includes Goldman Sachs £3,3 billion ($5,5 billion) US mortgage-backed securitization portfolioresulting in a gross capital gain of approximately £540 million.
With this operation, Lloyds strengthens its equity profile, refocusing on domestic uses. The tier 1 common equity of the British group will thus increase by 1,4 billion pounds while the core tier 1 will grow by 950 million.
The sale of the subprime mortgage portfolio fits perfectly into Lloyds' strategy, which is working on strengthening regulatory capital in view of the possible sale of the public stake acquired in 2008 to save the bank.
