A NatWest Group Plc bank branch in London, England, on Thursday, February 15, 2024.
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The British government said on Friday it had sold a stake in NatWest Group worth 1.24 billion pounds ($1.58 billion) to lenders, reducing its stake to about 22.5% from nearly 26% previously.
As part of an existing contract with the government, the London-listed bank bought back 392.4 million shares from the government over the counter at 316.2 pence per share.
NatWest shares were up 0.8% in early trading at 318.7p. This year they are up about 45%.
The UK, which made its retail offer to NatWest ahead of its July 4 election, said it was “working through internal due processes” when asked last week to clarify the impact the election might have on the planned retail offer.
The highly anticipated share sale is a major milestone in the bank’s full privatization.
The government’s stake in the former Royal Bank of Scotland, which was bailed out at the height of the global financial crisis in 2008, once stood at 84%.
In March this year, after selling shares to institutional investors, its shareholding dropped below 30% and it was no longer the bank’s controlling shareholder.
The state’s plan, which involves selling shares on the market and will run until August 2025, has not been suspended for off-market purchases, the government said on Friday.
Settlement of the over-the-counter purchases will take place on June 4, the government said in a statement.
Last month, NatWest reported a 27% lower-than-expected first-quarter profit drop amid an industry-wide revenue squeeze.
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