High-profile hedge fund manager Crispin Odey has halved his bearish position in Metro Bank since December, but remains the lender’s largest short-seller, according to a report by the Mail on Sunday.
Odey’s fund has held a negative wager in Metro Bank for a number of years, but the company now holds a “relatively unimportant” position in the portfolio, due to a low price and lack of liquidity in its shares, Odey told the Mail on Sunday.
Odey – whose holding now amounts to about 2 per cent of the shares available, worth almost £4 million – remains Metro’s largest short-seller. He predicts that the bank could soon be taken over by a rival.
Metro Bank’s share price has fallen 97 per cent over the past five years, with its market value now £170 million. Since 2020, the bank has posted losses reach £627 million since 2020. It recently drew up plans for an orderly wind-down if it were to fail, bringing it in line with Britain’s big lenders.
