Taxpayer stake in Lloyds falls below below 22 percent

LONDON (Reuters) - The size of the stake owned by British taxpayers in Lloyds Banking Group has fallen below 22 percent, according to a regulatory filing on Thursday. The filing said the public shareholding of HM Treasury in the British bank has been reduced to 21.99 percent, in another significant milestone towards restoring the bank to full private ownership. On March 9, HM Treasury sold 500 million pounds worth of shares in the British bank, which left it with a 22.98 percent stake, falling from a 40 percent stake when it was rescued in 2009. (Reporting By Anjuli Davies, edting by Carolyn Cohn)