TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's government is preparing to sell about 1.4 trillion yen ($13 billion) worth of shares in Japan Post Holdings Co Ltd, rivalling the conglomerate's huge 2015 initial public offering, three people with direct knowledge of the deal said on Monday.
The finance ministry plans the secondary offering as soon as the end of this month, the first sale since the company went public.
The finance ministry met on Monday with underwriters to discuss the sale, which investors have been anticipating since the government picked six investment banks in March to handle the offering.
The offering price and number of shares to be sold will be determined between Sept. 25 and 27 after gauging investor demand, said the sources, who were not authorised to discuss the matter publicly.
A Japan Post spokeswoman said the timing of the share sale has not been decided and declined to further comment. The ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The share sale is the first since the company and its two financial units made an unprecedented three-way initial public offering in November 2015, from which the government raised about $12 billion.
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The government, which now owns about 80 percent of Japan Post, eventually plans to sell $36 billion in the conglomerate, partly to fund reconstruction of areas in northern Japan hit by a catastrophic 2011 earthquake and tsunami.
Shares in the holding company fell 3 percent on Monday to 1,326 yen after Reuters reported on Friday that the government was preparing the share sale.
($1 = 109.4500 yen)
(Reporting by Taiga Uranaka; Editing by Christopher Cushing)