George Osborne, the Chancellor, will use the Conservative party conference in Manchester to announce the public share sale of £2 billion worth of Lloyds shares starting in spring, according to reports.
Lloyds shares will be sold to the public at a discount, according to the BBC. The government plans to sell the shares at 5 per cent of the market price, with a bonus share for every 10 shares for those who hold their investments for more than a year. Investors will be able to participate in the share incentive scheme up to a limit of£200 per investor.
The Government is also appealing to small investors by priorititising those with investments of less than £1000. Applications will be available online and by post. Investors can pre-register for information at www.gov.uk/lloydsshares.
The selling off of Lloyds is a historic moment for the bank, marking an end to its Government rescue during the financial crisis when £20 billion of public funding was needed to stop Lloyds going bust. The Government said it hoped to recoup £9 billion from shares that remained at the time of the pre-election budget in March.
The share sale was originally planned for the summer of 2014, but was put on hold due to volatile market conditions. The Government has sold off successive 1 per cent stakes to institutional investors, will the taxpayers' stake now standing at 12 per cent.
