Irish Financial Woes Dominate Discussion, Country's #2 Insurer Taken Over Insurance Journal
The European Insurance Forum, held in Dublin Monday and Tuesday, was dominated by the fiscal crisis that has hit Ireland particularly hard. Although the country's insurance industry remains a bright spot in an otherwise fairly bleak landscape, even it is not immune.
As the conference was winding up on Tuesday afternoon, Ireland's financial regulator announced that it was taking over control of Quinn Insurance, Ireland's second largest insurance company, as its accounts showed a massive deficiency.
Ireland's banks lent massively during the boom times, funding both home and commercial building projects, which are now unable to pay back the loans. The government created the National Asset Management Agency (NAMA) to deal with the problem, but as time goes by more and more "toxic assets" have come to light.
Anglo-Irish Bank is already under government control – following revelations of widespread accounting irregularities. The Bank of Ireland and Allied Irish Bank (AIB), while still functioning independently, are under government supervision, and will need to raise additional capital – €7.4 billion ($9.97 billion) for AIB and €2.7 billion ($3.638 billion) for Bank of Ireland.
Irish TimesAnglo loans 'breached' standardsIL&P's share price has fallen by over three quarters in the past 12 months, trailing even larger drops in Bank of Ireland and Allied Irish Bank (AIB). IL&P's share price has fallen by 76 per cent over the last 12 months and at €2.55 price it has a
FinFacts IrelandTuesday Newspaper Review - Irish Business News and International By Finfacts Team The Irish Times reports that a wrenching deterioration in AIB's business is laid bare in a new update from the bank's management, one of the final public statements from outgoing chief executive Eugene Sheehy and retiring chairman
