British government cuts Lloyds stake to below 17%

Britain has cut its stake in Lloyds Banking Group to below 17%, the country’s finance ministry said in a stock-market disclosure yesterday, taking the sum recovered by the UK taxpayer to £11.5bn (€16.2bn).

The taxpayer’s stake has fallen by 1%, to 16.87%, as UK Financial Investments (UKFI), which manages the government’s stakes in bailed-out banks, seeks to cash-in on investor appetite in Britain’s biggest retail bank.

“Today’s announcement shows the further progress made in returning Lloyds Banking Group to full private ownership and enabling the taxpayer to get their money back,” a Lloyds spokesman said.