Committee of MPs blame Lloyds Bank for HBOS debacle
Despite the fact that Lloyds Bank was invited to make an offer HBOS by the UK government, an influential committee of MPs has decided that Lloyds Bank directors were directly at fault for any issues which have arisen since the takeover. This despite the fact that Gordon Brown personally intervened and was highly influential in bringing together Lloyds Bank and HBOS to create what would have been the U.K.'s largest banking company by a long way.
Even the Lloyds Bank and HBOS together will dominate the UK banking sector for some time, there has been substantial fallout with regards the merger, the costs associated and the significant write-downs. All in all it would appear that Lloyds Bank, whether under pressure from the UK government or simply in a rush, did not appreciate the full extent of the demise of the HBOS business and the potential write-downs which have become apparent since the agreement was signed.
However, it is worth noting that without a takeover, HBOS would have been left high and dry and could potentially have pulled down the whole UK banking sector with it. While the billions of pounds spent on the takeover, both by Lloyds Bank shareholders and the government, may seem like a high price to pay to retain some kind of confidence in the sector, in many ways there was no other choice.
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