By Ian Walker
LONDON--The U.K. government has reduced its stake in Lloyds
Banking Group PLC to 23.9%, raising around GBP500 million ($770
million).
In a London Stock Exchange shareholding notification Lloyds said
that The Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury now owns 17.09
billion shares, or 23.9% of the bank's voting rights. It previously
held 17.14 billion shares.
No price for the share sale, which was conducted on Friday, was
disclosed. Lloyds shares closed Friday at 77.98 pence and rose
around 1.3% after trading opened on Monday. The transaction comes
just days before the bank reports full-year earnings.
The U.K. Treasury on Monday confirmed that it had sold around
GBP500 million of shares in Lloyds, taking the total amount of
money recovered for the taxpayer to just under GBP8 billion.
The U.K. government bailed out Lloyds during the financial
crisis, taking a 39% stake in the U.K.'s biggest retail bank, which
it started selling in late 2013.
The government said in December it would sell a further chunk of
shares in Lloyds by the end of June and mandated Morgan Stanley to
gradually sell stock at above the 73.6 pence a share average price
U.K. taxpayers paid to bail out the bank.
Previously U.K. Financial Investments Ltd, the body which
manages the government's stake in the Lloyds, has sold chunks of
Lloyds directly to investors through accelerated placements.
Write to Ian Walker at ian.walker@wsj.com
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