Jonathan Pierce, banking analyst, Credit Suisse: “We're surprised to see the entire TSB brand and some branches of Lloyds TSB in England and Wales are being sold. The divestments are a little greater than expected — at about £350 million of net profit up for sale against our expectation of £200 million to £300 million, but generally Lloyds shareholders should be reasonably happy with this outcome. On RBS, the new information is on balance good news for equity holders and could have been a lot worse. But there is continued uncertainty over APS losses, while political interference is likely all the while.

Vicky Redwood, UK economist, Capital Economics: “Overall, the latest round of public support for the banks highlights that the banking system is still a long way from standing on its own two feet. And until it starts to operate normally again, it is wishful thinking to expect the banks to start lending at decent growth rates.”

Keith Bowman, equities analyst, Hargreaves Lansdowne Stockbrokers: “The EU has effectively torn up the UK's initial rescue scheme for Lloyds/HBOS. UK consumers will in theory enjoy increased choice and lower pricing, while rivals like HSBC will be glad to see their rivals paying for their mistakes.”

David Thebault, Global Equities: “The timing of such a huge rights issue for Lloyds is quite bad. UBS today posted ugly results and CIT of the US just filed for bankruptcy. This raises the question: isn't it too early to pay back government money?”