Shareholders in Royal Bank of Scotland today approved a £20 billion sterling bail-out plan which could put nearly 60% of the company in public hands.
At a general meeting of the RBS Group in Edinburgh, shareholders voted 99.28% in favour of the proposal, which will see the bank offer £15 billion in new ordinary shares, with the Government promising to buy up any remaining.
The Government has also committed to buying £5 billion in preference shares which RBS will buy back in time.
Three major British banks - HBOS, Lloyds TSB and RBS - were bailed out last month after they were hit by the global credit crunch and resulting financial crisis.
