LONDON, July 13 (Reuters) – The Bank of England scrapped pandemic-era curbs on dividends from HSBC, Barclays and other top lenders with immediate effect on Tuesday, saying its stress test showed the sector was well capitalised to cope with the fallout from COVID on the economy.
Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey said the rapid rollout of the United Kingdom’s vaccination programme had led to an improvement in the economic outlook in recent months.
“But risks to the recovery remain. Households and businesses are likely to need continuing support from the financial system as the economy recovers and the government’s support measures unwind over the coming months,” Bailey said.
Shares in British lenders rose in early trading in London, with HSBC and NatWest up 2%. Barclays, Standard Chartered and Lloyds were all also up more than 1%, compared to a fractional 0.2% gain for the FTSE 100…
