The government could have reaped more value from the Royal Mail sale it if had been less cautious and better controlled access to shares, the National Audit Office has said.
In a report published today, the watchdog probed the reasons behind the sudden jump in the Royal Mail share price after the floatation in October 2013. NAO head Amyas Morse said the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) succeeded in getting the company listed on the FTSE 100, but added its approach "was marked by deep caution, the price of which was borne by the taxpayer". "The government retained 30% of the company. It could have retained even more and allowed the taxpayer to participate further in the rapidly increasing share price and thus limit the cost of to the ta...
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