Barclays downplays new FSA investigation

While better than expected results on Friday morning provided a lift for Barclays, the bank has been rocked by news of a new regulatory investigation, this time over fees it paid to advisors when it raised fresh capital in the middle of the credit crunch.

The revelation was tucked away on page 73 of the company's interim results statement which, at most, bought the company an hour or two of peace before the news media were all over the story like jackals on a wounded wildebeest.

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has kicked off an investigation into whether the bank's reporting of the fees it paid when persuading investors from the Middle East to invest in the bank in 2008 were comprehensive or timely enough.

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Barclays Finance Director Chris Lucas is among the four current and former senior employees whose activities are being put under the microscope.

Barclays believes it has met all disclosure obligations. Robert Peston, the BBC's business editor, says his sources at Barclays maintain there was no deliberate intent to hide fees or mislead other investors about what was paid to advisors on these transactions.

"They say that if there was a breach of the FSA's rules, it was an oversight," Peston reports. In other words, given a choice between conspiracy theory and cock-up theory, always choose the latter.

Although the move to get investors from Qatar and Abu Dhabi to take a stake in Barclays obviated the need for the bank to seek a bailout from the UK government, it still put the noses out of joint of some Barclays shareholders who felt that the new boys were being offered the chance to buy Barclays shares on terms more generous than those available to existing stakeholders.

Meanwhile, the fall-out from the LIBOR rate-fixing scandal continues to rain down on Barclays, with lawsuits set to fly in the US.

The group said it set aside £450m to cover possible redress for naughty behaviour relating to interest rate hedging products. That amount is in addition to the £290m in regulatory penalties relating to what Barclays refers to as "the industry-wide" (read: it was not just us doing it" investigation into the setting of inter-bank offered rates.

Another scandal from way back when - the mis-selling of payment protection insurance (PPI) plans - is also causing Barclays present day pain, as it set aside another £300m in the first quarter to cover potential PPI compensation claims, although - unlike Lloyds earlier this week - it did not increase the PPI provision in the second quarter.

Despite all of the above, spirits have been raised by the resilient performance of the bank, as evidenced by its first half results.

In a broker note which might as well have been entitled "Never mind the morality, feel the width (of the profits)" but which was, in fact, entitled "Bob's rich legacy lives on!" Barclays bull Ian Gordon at Investec described the results as "one in the eye" for "Barclays' many enemies and detractors".

First half revenues at Barclays Capital (BarCap, or "the casino arm" if you are one of Barclays' many detractors) came in £6.5bn and "shattered consensus expectations of £6.1bn," Gordon notes.

Developing his theme on BarCap's industry-leading performance, Gordon crows that after an "exceptionally strong" first quarter performance, BarCap's 14% year-on-year (yoy) growth in revenues was "head and shoulders above peers."

"Despite the more recent regulatory assault, this underpins the belief that, in challenging conditions, BarCap should continue to consolidate market share and enjoy a 'survivor's premium'.

"Even July is ahead yoy - the Universal Banking model (rightly) lives on," effused Gordon, who works for a company that provides a diverse range of financial products and services.

Investec reiterated its "buy" recommendation and 240p price target. Elsewhere, Exane BNP Paribas reiterated its "outperform" rating and 240p price target, while Espirito Santo Execution Noble broke with the consensus on a 240p price target and reiterated its 323p price target and "buy" recommendation.

Slightly less enthusiastic is Oriel Securities, which rates the shares a "hold" and which has a price target of 185p. Shore Capital also reiterated its "hold" recommendation on Barclays on Friday.