INVESTMENT MANAGERS STUNNED AT FITZPATRICK'S LOANS - The chief executive of the Irish Association of Investment Managers - the association representing institutional investors including pension funds - Frank O'Dwyer says that broadly speaking the institutional investors welcomed the decision to nationalise Anglo Irish Bank. However, he said that there was a great deal of anger and concern about what had brought the nationalisation about.
To put things into perspective, he says that investors in London and Wall Street spend about 30 seconds thinking about Ireland at the start of the day when they are making investment decisions. The prospect of a situation continuing where there is comment about poor governance or answered questions about a bank would undermine attitudes towards the rest of the banking system and Ireland generally. The Government's decision to takeover the bank removes this negative sentiment, he says.
Mr O'Dwyer says he and his members were 'stunned' by Sean Fitzpatrick's revelations just before Christmas. He says he expects people in the modern Ireland of today - in which there is a lot of great companies with an excellent track record in governance - would adhere in full to the principles of corporate governance. He says the idea that shareholders and potential investors would not be interested in the knowledge that directors' loans at the banks were €90m higher than was disclosed in the accounts is just incredulous.
***
MORNING BRIEFS - On the currency markets, the euro is worth $1.3224 and 89.25 pence sterling.
