The Government has sold its final stake in Lloyds Banking Group, returning the firm to full private ownership after a £20.3bn 2008 bailout.
Lloyds says the sale returned £21.2bn to the taxpayer, £894m more than the initial investment.
When the bank was bailed out after the financial crash the Treasury owned 43 per cent of the institution.
Now UK Financial Investments, which handled the share offload, has sold its remaining 0.89 per cent share in the lending group.
Lloyds Banking Group chief executive António Horta-Osório says: “Six years ago we inherited a business that was in a very fragile financial condition. Thanks to the hard work of everyone at Lloyds, we’ve turned the group around.”
Lloyds Banking Group chairman Norman Blackwell hailed the re-privatisation of the group, but added: “However, we are not complacent.
“While we are proud of the progress we have made over the last few years, we recognise there is still a lot to do to transform Lloyds Banking Group into the best bank for customers and play our full role in helping Britain prosper.”
