LONDON (AFP) – An Abu Dhabi sheikh who helped British bank Barclays avoid a state bailout during the global financial crisis has sold his stake.
Sheikh Mansour, who had injected £3.5 billion (4.0 billion euros, $5.3 billion) into Barclays in late 2008, offloaded his 7.0-percent share last month according to a recent statement which came to the notice of markets only on Friday.
The disposal will have generated a huge profit because Barclays shares have surged by more than 60 percent since the deal was made almost five years ago.
In October 2008, Barclays had raised a total of £7.0 billion from both Sheikh Mansour and the Gulf state of Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund.
The British lender secured the capital raising as an alternative to accepting a bail-out from the British government.
The 2008 rescue deal was brokered by former Barclays president Bob Diamond, who went on to become chief executive in 2010 but was forced to resign last year over the Libor rate-rigging scandal.
Sheikh Mansour owns English Premiership football club Manchester City.
Photo Credit: AFP/Karim Sahib
