Barclays pays out more than US$1bln to investors as profits rebound

FILE PHOTO: A Barclays bank building is seen at Canary Wharf in London, Britain May 17, 2017. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth

LONDON: Barclays will pay out more than a billion dollars in dividends and buybacks to shareholders after beating first-half profit forecasts on strong investment banking fees and the release of cash set aside to cover bad loan charges.

The British bank, which reported a near-quadrupling in first-half profits, said it would pay an interim dividend of 2 pence per share, equivalent to around 340 million pounds in total, after the Bank of England in July scrapped payout curbs.