Investors Raise Questions over Lloyds’ Non-Disclosure

New concerns have been raised by Lloyds Banking Group investors over the board’s non-disclosure of the extent of government support for HBOS before its ill-fated £5bn acquisition of the bank.
One institution claimed the revelation this week that HBOS had needed £25.4bn of emergency liquidity assistance between October 1 and January 16 “highlighted the poor information we as shareholders were able to get in order to make decisions at the time”.
Another questioned Lloyds’ judgment in deciding £5bn was a fair price when there were questions about HBOS’s solvency.
The row comes as Lloyds shareholders gather today to vote on the bank’s record £13.5bn rights issue. The FSA is already investigating HBOS over “the accuracy and completeness of financial disclosures made with its capital raising in 2008”.