If the rumor mill is accurate, it seems that Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) may get to beat Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) in the race to exit the TARP in the catch-up game to Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC). It seems every TARP borrower wants out from under such strict government control on pay and operations, let alone all of the scrutiny over every single business decision. But CNBC’s Maria Bartoromo just noted that Citi may make a announcement as soon as tomorrow of a giant capital raise to exit the TARP. While some may take this as breaking news, this has been under development all week (or longer) and has been one of the top rumor mill subjects.
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We saw earlier how Vikram Pandit canceled a trip to Texas and some reports said Pandit was in deep negotiations with regulators (and probably politicos) to repay the TARP.
Dick Bove of Rochdale Securities just told CNBC that Citi could do this with its cash on hand. But if it had to raise capital in a share sale as was suggested, Bove noted on CNBC that this would dilute existing common stockholders by about 20% if the discount was as deep as noted. Bove then noted that the capital raise would only need to be $10 billion. Maria Bartoromo’s report noted something more like $20 billion.
The saga continues….
Jon C. Ogg
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