UBS, the biggest European casualty of the US subprime crisis, surprised investors on Thursday by announcing it would raise slightly more than expected through the deeply discounted rights issue approved by shareholders last month to boost capital ratios.
The move came as Marcel Rohner, chief executive, told a Swiss business magazine that UBS did not foresee more massive writedowns in its troubled US credits on the scale of the $19bn hit announced last month. The bank said it would offer shareholders seven shares for every 20 held, pricing the new stock at SFr21 - a steep discount to Wednesday’s SFr30.64 close in Zurich. The 760m new shares would raise almost SFr16bn ($15.5bn), SFr1bn more than indicated at last month’s shareholders’ meeting.
