Dutch government moves to further shrink its stake in ABN Amro
The Netherlands is continuing to lower its ownership of ABN Amro, planning to cut the state's share to a much smaller level.
The Dutch state is advancing its plan to diminish its ownership of ABN Amro, with NLFI handling the share disposals on the government's behalf. While the exact target share is not disclosed, the intention is to bring the state's interest down to a modest fraction of the bank. ABN Amro was nationalised during the credit crisis for 16.8 billion euros to avert collapse, and the government started a phased sell-off in 2015.
Recent strong performance of the bank's stock has increased the revenue from each sale, potentially allowing the state to avoid losses and even make a slight profit. The most recent sale round, which lasted roughly ten months, raised nearly 2.5 billion euros. The timeline for reaching the final objective of zero state ownership remains unclear, but complete privatization is the ultimate aim.
Why it matters
The sale affects the Dutch state's finances and signals further privatization of a major national bank.
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