The French government concluded on Wednesday the sale of a 3.12-percent stake it held in aerospace group Safran for nearly 450 million euros (573 million U.S. dollars).

In a statement, French Minister of Economy and Finance Pierre Moscovici said the sale was launched on Tuesday through a private placement with institutional investors.

He confirmed on Wednesday that the government had sold its holding of 13 million shares in Safran, a leading aircraft equipment producer, and the deal will bring 448.5 million euros of benefits.

After the sale, the French government still remains, according to the economy ministry, the largest shareholder of Safran with 27.08 percent of its capital.

The proceeds from the sale will be used to fund new investments to boost the nation's economy.

As the leading international high-technology group with three businesses: aerospace, defence and security, Safran group has 62,500 employees worldwide and generated sales of 13.6 billion euros in 2012.