Election 2015: Lloyds backs Conservative plans to sell discounted shares in the bank
![Lloyds Stake Sale](https://d.ibtimes.co.uk/en/full/1434508/lloyds-stake-sale.jpg?w=736&f=9d6eb0b73fab85926b91990dbd7b30a8)
Lloyds has publicly thrown its weight behind the Conservative Party's plans to sell billions of pounds worth of shares in the bank at a discount to private retail investors, if the Tories are returned to power.
Under the terms of the offer buyers will receive a discount of at least 5% on the market price at the time of the sale and priority will be given to investors purchasing up to £1,000 worth of shares.
A Reuters report quoted a Lloyds spokesman as saying that "the sale of the stake is clearly a matter for the government. We will support the government in whatever way is required in due course".
Shares in Lloyds were trading 0.72% higher at 8.30am in London.
Discount for small investors
Writing in Sunday's Telegraph, Osborne said the initiative will give "many more people a stake in our economy," while ensuring the £20bn (€27.7bn, $30bn) Labour spent to bail out the bank following the financial crash of 2008 is repaid.
The minimum purchase will be £250 and there will be a maximum limit of £10,000.
Buyers will be rewarded with a loyalty bonus if they keep their shares for a year.
Critics of the plan have made the point that banks present a complex investment proposition and are relatively risky compared to traditional large scale "kitchen table" equity offerings like British Telecom.
The government has so far sold almost half of the 43% stake it was left with following the bailout but only to institutional investors.
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