CEO Daniel Frumkin and chair Robert Sharpe have both been summoned to meet with the Bank of England's Prudential Regulation Authority and Financial Conduct Authority today (5 October), according to a report by the FT.
Metro Bank has confirmed it is "evaluating the merits of a range of options" to refinance its debt, after Sky News revealed the bank was seeking to raise hundreds of millions of pounds in debt and equity to shore up its balance sheet, which sent its shares plummeting 30% in mid- morning trading.
ECB: Weaknesses in shadow banking increase spillover risk to European banking sector
Speculation about its financial position prompted Metro Bank to release a statement to the stock exchange, which stated the bank is "evaluating the merits of a range of options", including a combination of equity issuance, debt issuance and /or refinancing and asset sales.
"No decision has been made on whether to proceed with any of these options," the statement said.
The bank said it continues to consider "how to best enhance its capital resources", with particular regard to the £350m senior non-preferred notes due in October 2025.
According to the Sky News report, a share sale of up to £100m could be on the table, adding the bank has asked advisers at Morgan Stanley to work on a deal with the hopes of raising roughly £250m in MREL to service an outstanding MREL debt of £350m.
MREL is the minimum requirement for own funds and eligible liabilities.
Reuters had this morning suggested the bank could be seeking to raise as much as £600m across debt and equity, according to people familiar with the situation.
In today's statement, Metro Bank said it continues to meet its minimum regulatory capital requirements and had a total capital plus MREL ratio of 18.1%, and a leverage ratio of 4.4%, as at 30 June 2023.
Bank of England faces calls to delay new global banking capital rules - reports
The bank has been profitable on an underlying basis for three consecutive quarters ended 30 June 2023, partly helped by higher interest rates.
This was a return to profit for the bank following an accounting scandal in 2019, when it was revealed it had underestimated the risk of some of its loan book.
The bank said it expects the current year's third quarter trading update to show growth across personal and business current accounts and customer acquisition in line with expectations.
"Metro Bank continues to be well positioned for future growth," it said.