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U.K. Government Cuts Its NatWest Shareholding to 34.96%

By Elena Vardon

 

The U.K. government has reduced its stakeholding in British lender NatWest to 34.96% from 35.94%, regulatory filings showed on Monday.

The country's Treasury disposal was completed on Feb. 2, according to the filings. It now holds 12.27 billion shares, worth 27.10 billion pounds ($34.23 billion) based on Friday's closing price of 220.90 pence.

The U.K.'s stake in the bank resulted from the government's 2008 bailout of Royal Bank of Scotland, which bought NatWest in 2000 and rebranded the enlarged company as NatWest Group in 2020. The government spent 45.5 billion pounds ($57.48 billion) of taxpayer money on the bailout and at one point owned 84% of the bank.

The Chancellor is exploring options for a retail offer over the new year to sell down its stake further.

NatWest shares--which have shed 28% over the past 12 months--trade 0.7% lower at 219.3 pence at 0953 GMT, while the FTSE100 edges up 0.10%.

 

Write to Elena Vardon at elena.vardon@wsj.com

 

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 05, 2024 05:21 ET (10:21 GMT)

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