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Barclays has announced it is "actively considering" selling stock in the organisation to existing customers, in order to raise additional liquidity.

Following press speculation the bank may be about to make such an offer, Barclays announced to the markets this morning it was weighting up a "pre-emptive offer to existing shareholders".

It is thought Barclays will seek around £4 billion worth of investment, with the majority of the funds coming from existing investors purchasing stock at a premium price.

Through this method Barclays hopes to avoid a rights issue, similar to those carried out by other leading banks in recent weeks.

Last week Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) confirmed its rights issue had been largely successful, announcing it had sold 95 per cent of the stock issued.

HBOS is also seeking £4 billion through a rights issue, along with Bradford & Bingley which is seeking a relatively modest £250 million.

Following the announcement from Barclays the organisation's shares have increased markedly in price, up 9.91 per cent to 349.5 pence a shares at 08:14 BST.

The bank also confirmed in a statement: "A further announcement will be made in the event that the Board of Barclays decides to pursue such an equity issuance."

The statement also sought to reassure investors, saying profits for May were "well ahead" of levels seen in the same month last year, and that profits at its investment banking division met management's expectations.

Earlier this year the bank was forced to write off £1.7 billion in the wake of the global credit crunch, a significantly smaller sum than some of its leading rivals.