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With a collective issue of confidence in banks across the world, now is really not a good time for a rights issue. So the fact that shareholders were not biting off HBoS' hand to buy further shares is not really surprising. Indeed, I am one of them.

However what is astonishing is that the £4bn issue was such a flop and that so few took the plunge – 8 per cent is shockingly low when you consider the strength and quality of the bank before the credit crunch.

But these are uncertain and volatile times in the banking sector. HBoS did not help itself either, at first suggesting that it did not need recapitalisation and then changing its mind. And where is the incentive? Shareholders who have already seen hundreds of pounds wiped off the value of their investment will have legitimately questioned whether they want to throw more money after it.

The point is that further deterioration in the market is inevitable and nobody wants to pay more than something is worth – whether they are buying a house or shares.

Given the volatility in banking shares, what does not help is the prolonged period it takes to get a rights issue through. There is a long time for the share price to fall below the rights issue price, which does not do much to encourage shareholders. The Bradford & Bingley rights issue, which finally got through on its third attempt, is a prime example of this.

Melanie Bien is director of Savills Private Finance