Close Brothers shares surge after UK bank says it can ‘comfortably absorb’ cost of car finance compensation

Specialist lender says it expects its slice of £9.1bn compensation set by FCA to be about £320m

Close Brothers shares surged on Wednesday after the UK bank declared it could “comfortably absorb” its slice of a £9.1bn compensation bill over the motor finance scandal, hours after one of its rivals announced it was selling its UK operations over looming costs.

The specialist lender said it expected the final terms of the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) compensation scheme to cost roughly £320m, a sum that was “broadly similar” to previous estimates and the £294m put aside to date.