?-??-??-??-??-??-??-??-??-? Cheer! Cheer! Sau CITI, JPMORGAN, BOA, là đến BARCLAYS

-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-? Cheer! Cheer! Sau CITI, JPMORGAN, BOA, là đến BARCLAYS

Barclays Says â?~Strong Startâ?T to 2009, May Sell Unit (Update2)
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By Jon Menon

March 16 (Bloomberg) -- Barclays Plc said it had a â?ostrong startâ? to 2009 and continues to perform well as the U.K.â?Ts third-biggest lender tries to bolster its capital without giving a stake to the government.

Barclays also said it has held talks about the sale of iShares, the exchange-traded funds unit of Barclays Global Investors. No decision on the sale of any assets has been made, the London-based bank said in a statement.

Barclays rose as much as 15 percent in London trading as it joined banks such as Citigroup Inc., Deutsche Bank AG and Bank of America Inc. in announcing a positive start to the year. Barclays is exploring the sale of iShares after Royal Bank of Scotland Plc and Lloyds Banking Group Plc boosted their capital by accepting state aid that allowed the government to increase its stake in each bank to as much as 75 percent.

â?oThey have to get some capital as the world has changed,â? said Simon Maughan, an analyst at MF Global Securities Ltd. who has a â?osellâ? rating on Barclays stock. â?oThe market is talking about a sale price of 4 billion pounds for iShares, which is 60 percent of Barclaysâ?Ts market capitalization,â? indicating the stock may be â?oridiculously cheap.â?

Barclays today said it had begun talks with the Treasury about taking part in the asset protection program. The bank said its participation will be based on the â?oeconomic meritsâ? to shareholders. Barclays will only enter the program if it can do so without giving up a stake to the government, according to five analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News.

Being Realistic

In January, the bank said it wouldnâ?Tt need government funding because of record revenue from Barclays Global Investors and the acquisition of Lehman Brother Holdings Inc.â?Ts North American unit.

Barclays Global Investors had 1.04 trillion pounds of funds under management at the end of 2008, including 226 billion pounds at iShares.

â?oIn these markets you have to be realistic about the affordability and the fundingâ? for any potential purchaser of iShares, said Mike Trippitt, an analyst at Oriel Securities in London. If Barclays raises the participation fee for the asset protection plan by selling iShares, that would be â?opositive.â?

Barclays rose 11 percent to 82.2 pence as of 8:25 a.m. in London, after reaching a high of 85.2 pence. The stock has fallen 46 percent this year.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jon Menon in London at jmenon1@bloomberg.net;
Last Updated: March 16, 2009 04:33 EDT

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