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Government's stake in NatWest falls to below 15% as share sell-off continues

Government's stake in NatWest falls to below 15% as share sell-off continues
Samantha Partington
Written By:
Posted:
October 31, 2024
Updated:
October 31, 2024

The government’s stake in NatWest has reduced again this month after a further share sell-off reduces its holding in the bank to below 15%.

The Treasury now owns 4.92 billion voting rights after reducing its stake from 15.99% to 14.81% as part of its plan to return the bank to private ownership by 2026.

Earlier this month, the government reduced its shareholding from 20% – a position it held since July.

In September, Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced she was scrapping the previous government’s plans for a retail sale of NatWest shares, stating that while the government still intended to exit its shareholding by 2025-26, a retail share sale offer would involve significant discounts.

This, said Reeves, would cost taxpayers hundreds of millions of pounds and would not represent value for money.