Permanent TSB to raise €400m in public share offering

Permanent TSB will launch the first public share sale by an Irish bank since the financial crisis later today with a €400m offering, a source close to the matter said, in a key test of investor appetite for the sector.

The sale, by the smallest of Ireland’s three domestically owned banks and the only one to fail European stress tests last year, is part of its plan to raise €525m to help fill a capital hole identified by the European Central Bank (ECB).

The 99.2% State-owned bank last week secured shareholder approval to raise up to €400m in equity, but did not specify whether it would use a public or private sale. The money will be used to repay a Government loan. PTSB will raise the remaining €125m through so-called additional tier 1 bonds.