BNY Mellon has issued $1.25 billion of Series O preferred stock through a public offering of depositary shares. The financing adds a new class of perpetual preferred securities to the bank’s capital structure; it does not involve issuing common stock.
The depositary shares began representing interests in the preferred stock on October 28, 2026. The new shares are noncumulative, meaning any preferred dividend that is not declared is not carried forward as an amount owed.
Key details
- BNY Mellon issued 1.25 million depositary shares, each representing a 1/100th interest in one Series O preferred share.
- Each full preferred share has a $100,000 liquidation preference, making the aggregate liquidation preference of the issue $1.25 billion. Each depositary share therefore represents $1,000 of liquidation preference.
- The preferred stock is perpetual, with no maturity date stated in the announcement.
- If BNY Mellon does not declare and pay—or set aside—the dividend for a preferred dividend period, restrictions apply to dividends on, and purchases or redemptions of, common stock and other securities that rank below Series O.
- The supplied announcement does not state the preferred dividend rate or the offering proceeds after expenses.
Investor implications
The offering raises capital through preferred equity rather than common shares, so it does not directly dilute common shareholders’ ownership. It does add a preferred claim ahead of common stock, and missed Series O dividends can limit BNY Mellon’s ability to return capital to common shareholders through dividends or share repurchases.