Holly Cairns
Question:389. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Finance if he will outline the steps he is taking to ensure State investments are protected from international market volatility. [17219/23]
View answerTuesday, 18 April 2023
Questions (389)
Written answers
Banks, including AIB and PTSB, had been amongst the top performers in European stock markets in recent months as rising interest rates improved margins and many banks announced larger returns to investors. However, optimism toward the sector in general was negatively impacted following the various issues with Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank and Credit Suisse with the sector internationally coming under significant selling pressure.
AIB and PTSB, the Irish banks in which the State has a shareholding, were not immune from share price volatility in the days and weeks following the negative news around the banks referenced above. During this time, my officials kept me updated on any potential impact on the State's investments and also on any potential read-across to the sector from the factors which led to this latest crisis. I also met the CEO's of AIB and PTSB recently and received a general update on their performance.
Phase three of the AIB trading plan has been operational since 11 January 2023 with Bank of America Securities, acting as the trading plan manager. It is important to note that this trading plan has built-in features which were put in place to protect taxpayer value including a floor price (the price at which Bank of America Securities cannot sell below) which is reviewed from time to time. These protections resulted in relatively few shares being sold during the recent period of volatility and share price weakness.
With regard to PTSB, the State is currently not selling shares in the bank and has no such plans in the near term.