Herbert Smith and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer have snared the lead advisory roles on the £300m rights issue by UK lender Bradford & Bingley (B&B).

Herbert Smith is advising B&B, with the top 10 City outfit fielding a team under corporate chief Michael Walter and fellow corporate partners Adam Levitt and Will Pearce. Also advising are tax partner Derek Hill, employment partner Paul Ellerman and US securities partner Adam Wells.

Freshfields is advising the underwriting banks, Citi and UBS, with the magic circle giant fielding a team led by senior corporate partner Will Lawes.

Walter commented: "We are delighted to have assisted our long-standing client… to achieve this important step in its ongoing funding strategy. We take great pride in the support we are able to provide to the firm's institutional and corporate clients as they look to strengthen their financial and competitive positions in an increasingly challenging economic environment."

The issue, which is subject to shareholder approval and will be used by the bank to strengthen its capital position, is the latest in a line of similar moves by UK banks in recent weeks.

Allen & Overy (A&O) landed a plum role advising HBOS on its £4bn rights issue while Royal Bank of Scotland last month announced its own record-breaking £12bn cash-call, with magic circle giant Linklaters bagging lead advisory duties and Freshfields advising the underwriters, Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch and UBS.