Citigroup has told US regulators it wants to fill the capital shortfall identified in the government's “stress test” by selling large businesses, asking more investors to convert their preferred shares into common stock and shrinking its balance sheet.
With a few days to go before the results of the tests are announced, the troubled financial group, which has been bailed out three times by the authorities, is scrambling to find ways to raise capital without relying on more government funds.
Bank of America, another lender whose test has highlighted the need for funds, is also in talks with regulators over its capital needs and the possibility of converting government's preferred shares into common stock, bankers said.