FIONA REDDAN

Virgin Money, the lender backed by billionaire Richard Branson, climbed in its first day of trading after raising at least £312 million in an initial public offering that had been delayed by last month's market selloff.

The shares were sold for 283 pence apiece, valuing the bank at £1.25 billion (€1.6bn), according to a statement today. The shares, which were priced at the bottom of a range that went as high as 333 pence, gained 1.5 per cent to 287.25 pence at 9 a.m. in London. While the company drew orders for all the shares on sale within a day of opening, the low pricing reflects caution in a quarter where at least five IPOs in Europe have been postponed or withdrawn amid a stock-market selloff.

Virgin Money and Aldermore Group delayed sales in October. Virgin Money said on November 4th it would resume the IPO after the Bank of England announced lower-than-expected minimum regulatory ratios for banks, prompting a surge in shares of British banks.

The UK lender, which had a 3.8 per cent leverage ratio as of June 30th, already exceeds the BOE measure.

Blooomberg