Govt to sell £3bn Lloyds shares

Yesterday, Chancellor George Osborne furthered plans to return Lloyds Banking Group to private ownership by announcing that the government will sell part of its remaining shareholding in the firm.

Related topics:  Finance News
Rozi Jones
18th December 2014
lloyds bank

The Treasury plans to sell up to 5% in Lloyds Banking Group shares over the next six months raising about £3 billion.

Taxpayers still own 25% of the group, which includes Halifax, after its £20 billion rescue during the financial crisis.

The government received advice from UK Financial Investments today that it would be appropriate to sell another part of the government’s shareholding in Lloyds through a trading plan.

The government announced in a statement that they remain committed to restoring Lloyds to private ownership in a way which gets the best value for the taxpayer, building on previous share sales which have so far raised £7.4 billion.

Osborne has launched a trading plan which could commence in the coming days and will see shares gradually sold in the market over time “in an orderly and measured way”. The plan will be in place for approximately six months.

Shares will not be sold below the average price which the previous UK government paid for them, which was 73.6p. he previous sales of the government’s shares in Lloyds have raised £7.4bn, reducing the government’s stake in the bank from around 40% to just under 25%.

Morgan Stanley will act as broker on behalf of HM Treasury to execute the trading plan.

George Osborne said:

"I can confirm today that the government is taking the next step in returning Lloyds Banking Group to private ownership.

"The trading plan I’m initiating today is made possible by our long term economic plan which is delivering a more secure and resilient economy. It is another step in reducing our national debt and in getting taxpayers’ money back."

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