RBS 2007 Annual Report Download - page 162

RBS Group • Annual Report and Accounts 2007
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Notes on the accounts continued
Financial statements
Gross gains of £475 million (2006 – £357 million) and gross
losses of £9 million (2006 – £3 million) were realised on the
sale of available-for-sale equity shares.
Dividend income from available-for-sale equity shares was
£137 million (2006 – £92 million; 2005 – £108 million).
The Group’s private equity investments are generally unquoted.
They are held for capital appreciation over the medium term.
In December 2007, the Group disposed of a significant
proportion of its private equity portfolio to private equity funds
managed by the Group.
Unquoted equity investments whose fair value cannot be
reliably measured are carried at cost and classified as
available-for-sale financial assets. They include capital stock
(redeemable at cost) in the Federal Home Loans Bank and the
Federal Reserve Bank of £0.5 billion (2006 – £0.8 billion) that
the Group’s banking subsidiaries in the US are required to
hold; and a number of individually small shareholdings in
unlisted companies. Disposals in the year generated gains of
£0.5 million (2006 – £56 million; 2005 – £85 million) based on
cost of sales of £4 million (2006 – £14 million; 2005 – £17 million).
15 Equity shares
Group
2007 2006
Listed Unlisted Total Listed Unlisted Total
£m £m £m £m £m £m
Held-for-trading 33,696 3,850 37,546 3,033 5 3,038
Designated as at fair value through profit or loss 1,856 6,010 7,866 2,051 559 2,610
Available-for-sale 5,622 1,992 7,614 6,367 1,489 7,856
41,174 11,852 53,026 11,451 2,053 13,504
Available-for-sale
Gross unrealised gains 3,467 130 3,597 4,377 177 4,554
Gross unrealised losses (3) (7) (10) — (6) (6)