By e-mail:
15th September 2011
Dear Mr Lewis,
1. I am responding on behalf of UK Financial Investments (UKFI) to your request for information dated 23rd August which I am treating under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act 2000. You requested information on the structure of Lloyds Banking Group and its subsidiaries.
2. Following a search of our records, I can confirm that we do hold some of the information that you have requested, of which all is subject to Section 21 of the Act – information reasonably accessible to the applicant by other means. All of the information provided in my reply is from public sources, including the Annual reports of UKFI and Lloyds Banking Group.
3. It may be helpful if I briefly explain the role of UKFI. We have been set up to manage the Government’s investments in financial institutions, at arm’s length from Government and on a commercial basis. UKFI’s remit is to manage the Government’s shareholdings commercially to create and protect value for the taxpayer as shareholder and to devise and a strategy for realising value from the Government’s investments.
4. In order to be helpful, I have provided some information relevant to your request and listed the relevant links which should help you to find the information you are looking for.
5. Lloyds Banking Group was created in 2009 following the acquisition of HBOS plc by Lloyds TSB Group plc. HBOS plc was established in September 2001 from the merger of Halifax plc and Bank of Scotland. In April 1999 Birmingham Midshires became part of Halifax plc. The Lloyds Banking Group company heritage page on their website provides information about the histories of the main companies which make up Lloyds Banking Group, this is available at http://www.lloydsbankinggroup.com/about_us/company_heritage/history.asp). The historical records of HBOS plc and its constituents are maintained by the Halifax and Bank of Scotland Group Archives, further information can be found at the following webpage: http://www.lloydsbankinggroup.com/about_us/company_heritage/Group_Archives/halifax_bos_group_archives.asp.
6. Lloyds announced the acquisition of HBOS on 18 September 2008, creating the largest retail financial services provider in the UK with a consolidated balance sheet of £1.1 trillion and serving over 30 million customers. Initial terms were that HBOS shareholders would receive 0.83 Lloyds TSB shares for each HBOS share. Following the deterioration in market conditions, Lloyds announced revised terms on 13 October alongside participation in the Bank Recapitalisation Scheme. HBOS shareholders received 0.605 Lloyds TSB shares for each HBOS share. The acquisition closed on 16 January 2009. (source: UK Financial Investments Market Investment Strategy and Annual Report and Accounts 2008/9 available at www.ukfi.co.uk/publications).
7. You may also wish to review the Annual Reports of Lloyds Banking Group and its subsidiaries which are available here: http://www.lloydsbankinggroup.com/investors/financial_performance.asp.
8. You asked about the ability of members of the public to obtain information about these companies. UKFI’s relationship with Lloyds, as described in its Framework Document, is that of an arm’s-length institutional shareholder. The Government’s investee companies remain separate commercial entities, with their own independent boards and management teams, and are subject to the same information disclosures as any other listed UK company. UKFI holds information on these companies which is required for us to perform our role in managing these investments, with a view to selling down the holdings over time.
9. UK Financial Investments is unable to comment or advise on personal financial arrangements with its investee companies and I suggest that you directly contact the bank in question to answer your queries about the terms and repayment of loans.
10. For further information on UKFI’s role and remit, and to view the framework document in full please see our website: www.ukfi.co.uk/publications. If you have any queries about this letter, please contact me on the details provided above.
Yours sincerely,
Mandeep Dhillon
Correspondence Officer
UK Financial investments Ltd
Your Rights to Complain under the FOI Act
If you are unhappy with the service you have received in relation to your request and wish to make a complaint or request an review of our decision, you should write within two months of the date of this letter to UK Financial Investments, Oceanic House, 1a Cockspur Street, London SW1Y 5BG. email – . If you are not content with the outcome your complaint, you may apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a decision. Generally, the ICO cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted the complaints procedure provided by the Treasury. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at: The Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF.
UK Financial Investments Limited is a company registered in England and Wales with company number 06720891.
Its registered office is at 2 Lambs Passage, London EC1Y 8BB.