The raise comes 3 months after the investment bank reported AUS$5 billion (US$675.4 million) in excess capital, prompting UBS analysts to question the need to sell shares while Goldman Sachs analysts called the exercise a ‘surprise’. The bank is offering shares to institutional investors priced AUS$118 to AUS$123.5 each.
The lower end of the price range is a 4.5% discount to Macquarie’s US$123.51 close on Wednesday. However, the end price is likely to be higher, two Reuters sources said.
