Nationwide and Co-op address capital shortfalls - Telegraph.co.uk

Separately, the PRA gave Nationwide the all-clear to meet a tough new regulatory benchmark without raising capital. Last month, Nationwide and Barclays ran into trouble with the regulator after falling short of a 3pc "leverage ratio" – a measure of capital against total assets.

Yesterday, Nationwide was given until the end of 2015 to hit the target – two years earlier than the timeframe set by the global regulators in Switzerland. Analysts at Moody's Investors Service estimated that the mutual would need to raise £1.8bn in that time to meet the rule.

The 30-month timescale appeared to be a retreat by the PRA, which sparked a row over lending after making its surprise demand in June. Nationwide was already planning to hit the target "well ahead" of 2018. Barclays expects to meet it by 2015, but remains in discussions with the PRA.