Northern Rock may have borrowed as much as £29 billion (€40 billion) from the Bank of England (BoE) since its crisis began, after a jump in loans last week, according to BoE data.
Northern Rock is likely to have borrowed £2.7 billion (€3.8 billion) last week, up from an estimated £1.1 billion (€1.5 billion) in the previous week, the latest BoE balance sheet data showed today.
That would be the biggest weekly loan for five weeks, based on the data. By 4pm, shares in Northern Rock, which is seeking a buyer, were down 4.7 per cent at 115p.
Northern Rock may have borrowed as much as £29 billion (€40 billion) from the Bank of England since its crisis began
Northern Rock has been borrowing from the Bank of England since a financing crisis erupted on September 14th, after it was unable to raise funds in wholesale markets.
News of the emergency loan sparked the first run on the savings of a major British bank for 140 years, and the bank is now seeking a buyer. A consortium led by Virgin Group was picked as preferred bidder on Monday.
Northern Rock said the selection of Virgin had a "positive, reassuring impact" on its customers, after several of its rivals had reported big jumps in deposits in recent months, attributed to customers leaving Northern Rock.
The BoE and Northern Rock have refused to comment on how much has been lent, but UK finance minister Alistair Darling said last week the balance sheet data in the weekly accounts gave a good guide.