£4.3m windfall for Lloyds boss

ALISON Brittain, the head of Lloyds Banking Group’s retail division, has sold more than £4.3 million worth of shares in the state-backed lender.

Brittain, who oversees the group’s high street business, including Bank of Scotland and Halifax, was given more than 5.8 million shares in 2011 in compensation for losing out on bonuses when Lloyds chief executive Antonio Horta-Osorio lured her from his former employer, Santander.

The shares were worth £1.8m when they were awarded, but soared in value over the past two years, rising from 30.65p each to 74.31p by the time Brittain sold them.

Lloyds, which is 39 per cent owned by the taxpayer, said Brittain had played a “key role” in the group’s success and the recovery in its shares.