The British government plans to sell Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc by divesting 3 billion pounds that is about $4 billion share by the end of march 2019.
The plan comes as a boon to U.K’s Finance minister, Philip Hammond, who on Wednesday delivered a gloomy budget statement warning of lower tax revenues.
The share sale would represent around two thirds of the government’s 71 percent stake in RBS at current market prices.
The British government pumped 45.5 billion pounds into RBS in the depths of the financial crisis, and efforts to recover the money from the bank have failed due to plunging share price, regulatory probes in the United States and Brexit.
In documents released on budget day, the Treasury said: “RBS has made significant progress on resolving its legacy issues and refocusing on serving British businesses and consumers.
“It remains the government’s objective to return the bank fully to the private sector when it represents value for money to do so and market conditions allow.”
The government said it now faces a £26.2bn loss on its stake in RBS, down from a previous forecast of £29.2bn in March, after a recent recovery in the value of the bank’s shares.
Last month, RBS posted its third consecutive quarter in the black after swinging to profit over the last three months.
The bank recorded a £392m profit for the quarter to 30 September, which compares with a £469m loss in the same period last year.
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