That didn’t last long. Two weeks ago, Metro Bank said it was in discussions about a takeover approach from private equity giant Carlyle. Now, the talks are “terminated” for reasons neither side is prepared to state.
As it headed to the exit, Carlyle didn’t even offer a few polite words of encouragement for the Metro management crew trying to revitalise a lender whose go-go expansion plans were blown apart by a misreporting scandal in 2019. Metro’s shares fell 19%, returning to where they had stood at the start of the month.
The failure of the talks means we won’t hear Carlyle’s tentative original thinking. But the lack of action is another blow to the idea that once valuations of third-tier banks fall far enough – and Metro is valued at just
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