Government Selling 15% Stake In Royal Mail

[POSTMAN]

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Ministers waste no time in selling another chunk of Royal Mail - saying its share price represents good value for taxpayers.

Around 150 million shares - 15% of the privatised company - will be placed with institutional investors.

No shares will be reserved for employees - who received 10% last time - or retail investors.

"Current market conditions represent a good opportunity to achieve value for the taxpayer," a Department for Business, Innovation & Skills spokesman said.

Shares were up nearly 1% at 516.5p - close to a one-year high - when markets closed on Wednesday.

The sale will raise around £770m for the taxpayer.

The Coalition government sold 70% of the 500-year-old postal service when it was floated in 2013.

Ministers were advised by Goldman Sachs and UBS, and came under fire when the share price was set at 330p and then soared by nearly 90% on the stock market.

Last week, Chancellor George Osborne announced he would sell taxpayers' remaining 30% stake, worth about £1.5bn, as part of a renewed push to wipe out the budget deficit.

Postal workers' union CWU said it showed the Conservatives were "only interested in privatisation dogma and making the rich richer".

BofA Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan are acting as book runners for the 15% placing with institutions.

The placing will take place overnight through a process known as an "accelerated book build".

Details of the share price will be announced later.

[Chelseablue]

It's like watching the Royal Mail disappear in front of our eyes, and being helpless as fk .

[Spedley]

Has this changed from 30% to 15% because they just remembered we have Options with our SAYE scheme? Please tell me it can't be! :-)

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Has this changed from 30% to 15% because they just remembered we have Options with our SAYE scheme? Please tell me it can't be! :-)

No the SAYE is separate from this. As I understand it those shares have already been purchased by RM, or form part of their holding. At the end of the scheme we can exercise the option to but those shares and then cash them in when we want, or to take the cash. If I am right its 2 seperate issues.