Barclays faces legal scrutiny over role in £90m ‘Ponzi scheme within a Ponzi scheme’

UK companies have spent over £1.3 billion in 2026 buying their own offices, driven by falling prices and rising rents. Barclays' £750 million deal for its HQ was the largest. High fit-out costs and supply shortages also motivate purchases. Other buyers include State Street, State Bank of India, Bank of New York Mellon, and Lloyds Banking Group.

Bank of America upgraded Lloyds (LLOY) to Buy, raising its price target to 140p, while downgrading Barclays (BARC) to Neutral, cutting its target to 585p. The firm prefers Lloyds' retail focus over Barclays' mixed banking exposure, citing UK competition. Lloyds ADR rose 1.1%, Barclays fell 1.3%.

Barclays stock fell 3.4% to 479.65p after BofA Securities downgraded it to Neutral with a 580p target, despite raising 2026 revenue estimates to GBP 31.5B. The bank's shares were already under pressure, trading below key moving averages. Barclays' first-half 2026 results showed strong earnings, but investors question the durability of this growth. The broader market context, including a global bond selloff and risk-off sentiment, also contributed to the decline.

Barclays is reshuffling investment bank leadership again, according to an internal memo seen by the Financial Times and confirmed by Barclays. Mike Joo, currently Bank of America’s co-head of global investment banking, will become co-CEO of Barclays’ investment bank in February, pending regulatory approval. Adeel Khan will be promoted to co-CEO for global markets.

Barclays is defending a High Court case brought by administrators of collapsed shadow bank Market Financial Solutions (MFS), led by AlixPartners, seeking cash they say Barclays owes. The bank held more than £160m for MFS entities and says its exposure was about £500m, expecting to recover over 50%. Barclays cites fraud allegations and freezing orders.

Barclays PLC said it will start a share buy-back on 29 July 2026, ending no later than 28 January 2027, subject to regulatory approvals. The programme allows purchases of up to £1,000m of Barclays ordinary shares (25 pence each), to reduce share capital by cancelling bought shares. Citi will execute on-market purchases on Barclays’ behalf.