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BG Share Floatation 1980's - CGT Calculation?
Hi,
I purchased 200 BG shares when they were privatised in the 1980's. I held on to them and over the years they have spun off, merged, split, etc.
Now, in 2026, I hold shares in Shell, National Grid and Centrica. All of these are derived from the original 200 BG shares I purchased in the 1980's.
I'm now retired and wish to sell all of my shares but I haven't a clue as to how to calculate the CGT owed on such a convoluted scenario. I'm pretty sure it's not as easy as deducting the original purchase price from the current combined value of all of my shares.
Have anyone gone through this exercise or does anyone have any advice? I'd be much obliged!
Comments
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I have no idea, but if you do find out and see Sid, tell him.
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It can depend on exactly how the mergers etc were handled, but in most cases I think the shares are treated as if they were bought at the same time and for the same price as the original shares.
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In the past there have been threads on this. This one has a link to a National Grid document that might help:
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6576868/cgt
Taken together how much are they all worth? You have £3,000 per tax year CGT 0% allowance.
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I have reinvested my dividends for decades so have acquired many more shares over the years. I think this is going to be a long hard slog through my records… sigh.. a spreadsheet will probably help. Thanks
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Thanks wmb194 for the link but I had found that document a while ago when I previously thought about working out my CGT liability.
Don't make me laugh, or is it cry? by mentioning the crappy CGT allowance. It's been steadily reduced over the years from I think £10,000 to the measly £3,000 today. Talk about stealth taxes!
I have over £8,000 at today's valuation so this is gonna cost me - that's if I ever get to work out what I actually owe 😔
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Did you use a dividend reinvestment plan?
No reliance should be placed on the above! Absolutely none, do you hear?0 -
I have over £8,000 at today's valuation so this is gonna cost me
Do you need all £8000 this year?
If not, you could sell £3000-worth this year and be confident you're under the CGT threshold. Then sell more next year, and so on.
N. Hampshire, he/him. Octopus Intelligent Go elec / Fuse gas / Vodafone BB / iD mobile. Kirk Hill Co-op member.Economy 7 cap explainer. Gas vs E7 vs peak elec heating costs, Ecoflow Stream, Best kettle :-)
2.72kWp PV facing SSW installed Jan 2012. 11 x 247w panels, 3.6kw inverter. 37 MWh generated, long-term average 2.6 Os.2 -
Hi, yes I did.
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They should be able to tell you the total amount of reinvested dividends. So, your total cost price is that plus what you paid for the original shares.
Your sale price, net of costs, will be known.
That's all you need.
No reliance should be placed on the above! Absolutely none, do you hear?1 -
And, if married, you can gift half to your wife, so as to make use of her £3000.
No reliance should be placed on the above! Absolutely none, do you hear?1
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