By Ian Walker
LONDON--The U.K. government has reduced its stake in Lloyds
Banking Group PLC to 23.9%, the lender said Monday.
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. The
transaction comes just days before the bank reports full-year
earnings.
The U.K. government bailed out Lloyds during the financial
crisis, taking a 39% stake in the U.K.'s biggest retail bank. So
far, the government has raised GBP7.4 billion ($11.4 billion)
selling bits of its stake in the lender.
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 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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