The UK government on Monday said that it was no longer a controlling shareholder in NatWest having reduced its stake to below 30 per cent.

The government had initially set out a target of returning NatWest to private ownership by 2026, and still aims to sell a remaining amount of its stock to the public as early as June.

The news was confirmed in a statement by economic secretary Bim Afolami, who said: "This is a significant milestone demonstrating we're making excellent progress on fully returning NatWest to private ownership.”

The bank earlier this month had sought shareholder approval to buy back up to 15 per cent of its stock from the government. There had previously been set a cap of 5 per cent.

Reducing its stake to below 30 per cent – to 29.82 per cent – means that the government is now, under UK listing rules, no longer classified as a controlling shareholder. This will give the bank more freedom on its appointment of directors.

NatWest – then known as RBS Group – was bailed out by the government in the wake of the 2008-09 financial crisis, with the then-Labour administration acquiring 84 per cent of the financial institution.

Afolami added: "In addition to our successful trading plan, we are now looking ahead to a retail offering of NatWest shares which could come as soon as this summer, subject to market conditions and value for money."

NatWest said in a statement: "We welcome the government's continued commitment to returning NatWest Group to private ownership.

"With the government shareholding now below 30 per cent, we have been pleased with the recent momentum to achieving this shared ambition, which we believe is in the best interests of the bank and our shareholders."

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