Royal Bank of Scotland says it is exploring different ways of raising capital after reports it was seeking to avoid handing greater control to the British government.
RBS is 70% owned by Britain's taxpayers after being bailed out in the global financial crisis. It is also preparing to join the British government's insurance scheme for toxic assets.
But it is also considering a £3-4 billion share issue to reduce the stake it would hand the government for joining the scheme, according to recent media reports.
'RBS notes recent press comments regarding its participation in the Asset Protection Scheme and any associated capital raising,' it said in a statement. RBS said that, as part of its assessment of the scheme, it was considering whether there were any 'partial alternatives' to issuing more shares to the government.
'These considerations are tentative only and there are no firm plans to put to the board or the shareholders of RBS at the current time,' the statement added.
RBS could put £325 billion worth of toxic assets into the scheme, which provides guarantees for risky assets, and would have to issue £19 billion of non-voting shares to the government as a fee, a Financial Times report said.
Meanwhile, according to the BBC, raising fresh capital by issuing new shares could stop the government's share of the bank increasing from 70% to a possible 84.5%.
