LONDON – U.K. Treasury chief Philip Hammond says taxpayers have recovered all of the funds Britain injected into Lloyds Banking Group at the height of the 2008 financial crisis.
Hammond said Friday in Washington that it had passed the milestone, recovering all 20.3 billion pounds (currently worth $26 billion) injected.
Hammond says that while stepping in to offer support was right, "the government should not be in the business of owning banks in the long term." A remaining 2 percent stake is set to be sold in coming months depending on market conditions.
By contrast, Royal Bank of Scotland — the other major institution bailed out in the crisis — remains firmly owned by the taxpayer. The government owns 72 percent of RBS, which was briefly the largest bank in the world.
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