London, Feb 25, 2026, 08:38 GMT — Regular session
- Lloyds edged up roughly 0.7% to 103.3 pence early, recovering some ground after Tuesday’s 1.2% tumble.
- The bank announced it’s buying back two additional tranches of shares for cancellation, adding to its existing repurchase program.
- Attention now turns to the Bank of England’s rate call set for March 19, with UK inflation numbers following on March 25.
Lloyds Banking Group plc ticked up about 0.7% to 103.3 pence in early Wednesday trade, after announcing new share buybacks. Shares had dropped 1.2% the previous day.
Buyback announcements keep rolling in just as bank shares face renewed pressure, with investors sizing up the odds of a rate cut in the UK. Bank of England chief Andrew Bailey, addressing lawmakers, called a March move a “genuinely open question” after services inflation surprised on the upside, defying central bank expectations. Reuters
Concerns over loan quality are resurfacing. Kathleen Brooks, who heads research at XTB, noted, “A narrative around credit concerns and a potential 2008 scenario forming is also starting to gain traction.” She highlighted recent remarks from JPMorgan chief Jamie Dimon, who warned that competitors are doing “dumb things” to chase net interest income — that’s the spread between what banks make from loans and what they pay on deposits. Lloyds Bank Investments
Lloyds disclosed in a filing that it repurchased 15 million shares on Feb. 24 via broker Goldman Sachs International, paying between 101.20 and 102.90 pence apiece. The volume-weighted average price landed at 102.2666 pence. The bank said the shares will be cancelled.
According to the disclosure, the previous day saw a buyback of 5 million shares, picked up between 102.85 and 105.80 pence. The VWAP for that batch landed at 104.5975 pence. Like the others, these shares are earmarked for cancellation.
The buyback programme, capped at £1.75 billion and launched Jan. 30, is still underway. Lloyds flagged April 9 as the ex‑dividend date, so investors picking up shares after then won’t be eligible for the next payment. The final 2025 dividend lands May 19.
It’s been a rough patch for the sector lately. On Tuesday, a slump in bank shares weighed on London’s main index. Standard Chartered slid 1.4%, despite posting stronger annual profit figures and rolling out a $1.5 billion buyback. Investors, meanwhile, were watching new U.S. tariffs and changing trade cues.
Traders are watching for the UK’s upcoming inflation print, with the Office for National Statistics set to release fresh consumer price numbers on March 25.
Buybacks might help support earnings per share, but the main worries—credit losses, funding costs, legal headaches—remain unresolved. Lloyds has already flagged that fallout from the UK motor finance commission scandal will hit 2025 numbers, keeping the stock exposed if household finances start to crack.
