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# Metro Bank starts a formal sale process as it targets a return on tangible equity above 18% in 2028
- URL: https://www.theglobalbanker.com/metro-bank-starts-a-formal-sale-process-as-it-targets-a-return-on-tangible-equity-above-18-in-2028/
- Published: 2026-11-13T00:59:32.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-13T00:59:32.000Z
- Description: Metro Bank, the UK lender rescued by a £925mn funding package in 2023, has invited takeover interest through a formal sale process with Morgan Stanley as lead financial adviser, while keeping its target of a return on tangible equity above 18% in 2028.
- Author: TGB Editorial Team
- Tags: M&A, Europe, #newsroom, #needs-photo

Metro Bank has begun a strategic review of how it can accelerate growth, including a formal sale process under the Takeover Code, the lender announced at 07:00 on 12 November 2026\. It has appointed [Morgan Stanley](https://www.theglobalbanker.com/rankings/) as lead financial adviser and invited expressions of interest in a potential transaction for its entire share capital.

The bank said it is not in active discussions with any potential offeror and is not considered to have received an approach from any potential offeror, and that there can be no certainty an offer will be made. Its shares jumped as much as 6% to 188.8p on Thursday.

## HOW THE SALE PROCESS WORKS

The Takeover Panel has granted a dispensation so that parties taking part in the process need not be publicly identified and are not bound by the 28-day deadline under Rule 2.6(a) of the Takeover Code while they participate. Each must sign a non-disclosure and standstill agreement with the company before it can join.

If the process does not lead to a transaction, Metro Bank said it will continue to execute its strategy and deliver its guidance. The announcement started an offer period and drew shareholders' attention to the disclosure requirements of Rule 8 of the Takeover Code.

## FROM RESCUE TO RECORD PROFIT

The lender was rescued by a £925mn funding package in 2023\. Shareholders approved a capital fundraise that made the Colombian billionaire Jaime Gilinski Bacal majority shareholder with a 53% stake, and Shore Capital analyst Gary Greenwood described him as having bailed the bank out in 2023\. It has cut more than 1,000 roles and scrapped the seven-day opening hours that were once central to its model.

It returned to profit in 2025 with £87.2m, against a loss of £212.1m in 2024, and in August reported a 41% rise in pre-tax profit to £60.7m for the six months to June, its most profitable half-year on record. The bank, which has 78 branches, has moved away from mainstream lending towards higher-margin commercial and specialist loans, and its core target lending book grew 43% to £6.2bn in the first half.

It competes in a [United Kingdom](https://www.theglobalbanker.com/market-united-kingdom/) market where the PRA regulated 146 UK-incorporated banks and 120 branches of overseas banks at 1 November 2026, according to TGB's market profile. Domestic retail and commercial banking is led by Lloyds Banking Group, NatWest, Barclays, HSBC UK, Santander UK and Nationwide.

## WHAT A BUYER WOULD WEIGH

The board points to the lowest cost of deposits of any UK high street bank and its capabilities in commercial lending. Gary Greenwood, banking analyst at Shore Capital, said the business has executed a strong turnaround under chief executive Daniel Frumkin. He added that an all-cash sale to private equity appeared the cleanest outcome, allowing Gilinski to exit his controlling position, while a larger bank may be reluctant to pay up for Metro Bank's expensive branch network.

The review also comes during a change at the top of the board. Chairman Robert Sharpe left at the end of October after six years, and senior independent director Catherine Brown was appointed interim chair, subject to regulatory approval, while the bank began searching for a permanent replacement.

## THE TGB VIEW

Metro Bank's guidance is for a return on tangible equity above 13% in the fourth quarter of 2026, above 15% in 2027 and above 18% in 2028\. In TGB's 2026 table of the largest banks in Europe, ranked by total assets, NatWest Group is 16th with a 13.7% return on equity and Lloyds Banking Group 11th with 9.8%. Metro Bank's 2028 target is above both figures, though return on tangible equity and return on equity are measured differently, and the first of its targets applies to the fourth quarter of 2026.