Investors scrambled to buy shares in Royal Mail today as stockbrokers prepared to open late to cope with demand.
One broker told the Standard it was operating “exceptional” opening hours as tomorrow’s midnight deadline for purchase applications approached.
The surge in interest came as shadow business secretary Chuka Umunna accused ministers of letting shares go far too cheaply and urged them to “pull the plug”. Shares are being sold at between £2.60 and £3.30 each but are expected to jump in value when trading starts next week.
Stockbroker Hargreaves Lansdown said it had opened yesterday, and would open until 7pm tonight and midnight tomorrow to take calls.
Mr Umunna highlighted suggestions from analysts Panmure Gordon that Royal Mail is worth up to £4.5 billion, far more than the Government’s valuation. He said: “It’s a dream for City speculators and hedge funds but it’s a nightmare for the taxpayer, who ultimately doesn’t want this to happen anyway and is now also being hugely short-changed.”
The shadow minister said private owners would be tempted to sell off Royal Mail sites for development to make a quick profit — and he called on ministers to put “egos to one side” and cancel the sell-off before allocations are announced on Friday.
But a government spokesman said: “This is a commercial transaction and [we are] following normal commercial practice in setting and publicising the share price and delivering value for the taxpayer.” Up to 62 per cent of Royal Mail is up for grabs. A 10 per cent stake in the business has been reserved for Royal Mail employees.
