By Richard Johnstone | 23 February 2015
The Treasury has sold a further £500m of shares in the bailed-out Lloyds Banking Group, taking the total that has recovered from selling the public sector stake in the firm to nearly £8bn.
The sale, which is the first made under a trading plan for the sell-off agreed in December, means the government now owns less than 24% of the bank, down from a peak of around 40% at the height of the financial crisis.
Announcing the sale, Chancellor George Osborne said that the sale represented further progress in returning Lloyds Banking Group to private ownership, reducing the national debt and getting taxpayers’ money back.
‘The trading plan and its success are only made possible by our long-term economic plan which is delivering a more secure and resilient economy,’ he added.
Under the scheme, sales are sold gradually over time, as determined by UK Financial Investments, which manages the Treasury’s investment in bailed out banks also including Royal Bank of Scotland. Authorisation for the current programme of share sales lasts until June 30.
