British bank Barclays has announced a proposal to raise more than 7.3 billion Stg using funds from the royal families of Qatar and Abu Dhabi.
Unlike other big UK banks Barclays did not want to accept cash from the British government saying the move would keep it strong and independent.
If the deal is completed as expected, the Middle Eastern investors will have an almost 32% stake in Barclays.
Analysts say the move could put the bank in a stronger position than many other UK banks and will be looked upon more favourably by the British public.
However, the terms of the deal will not necessarily be cheaper than those offered by the UK treasury.
But Barclays says the plan allows the bank to fulfil the capital raising requirements stipulated by the UK government.
The bank says it's made a profit in the nine months till the end of September despite more writedowns.
Barclays has lost billions of pounds from credit-related asset writedowns and is faced with a sharply slowing UK housing market and economy.
Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, a member of Abu Dhabi's royal family, is investing up to 3.5 billion Stg in Barclays.
If the deal is completed as expected, he will end up with a 16.3% stake in the bank.
It is also raising up to 2 billion Stg from Qatar Holdings and 300 million Stg from Challenger, controlled by Qatar's Royal Family.
That could leave the two Qatari investment vehicles, which already have small holdings in Barclays, with stakes of 6.2% and 2.8% respectively.
Barclays is also seeking to raise an additional 1.5 billion Stg from existing institutional investors such as pension funds.
Barclays' investor base has been transformed in the past two years, as it has raised funds from investors in China, Singapore and Japan as well as the Middle East and the bank expects to benefit commercially from the links as well as getting cash.
"There has been a significant shift in the availability of capital and economic power in the world over the last five years and we're ensuring we're aligned with those changes," said John Varley, Barclays chief executive.
