B&B gains 17% after board rejects £400m offer

Shares in UK mortgage lender Bradford & Bingley shot up 17% yesterday, after financial entrepreneur Clive Cowdery announced plans to invest £400m in B&B for a 49% stake. B&B’s board, however, rejected the offer. Three weeks ago B&B restructured its rights issue, managed by Citigroup and UBS, to sell 23% of its capital to US private equity firm Texas Pacific Group. B&B will seek approval for the £258m rights issue from shareholders on July 7. Read EuroWeek on Friday for the latest news on this Protean deal.