The government has announced that it intends to fully exit from its Lloyds shareholding in the coming months, and as part of this at least £2bn of shares will be sold to retail investors.

Members of the public will be offered a discount of 5% of the market price, with a bonus share for every 10 shares for those who hold their investment for more than a year. The value of the bonus share incentive will be capped at £200 per investor. People applying for investments of less than £1,000 will be prioritised, the Treasury said.

Chancellor George Osborne told Sky News: “I want [shares] to go to members of the public, people watching this programme and others. So our offer is this: Buy Lloyds shares. We’ll favour small investors, we’ll favour those who hold the shares for a long time. You’ll get a discount. And we’ll help create that share-owning democracy that we want to see in this country.”