Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 18 February 2014
231. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Finance if he will provide a detailed breakdown of the costs incurred in respect of the recent balance sheet assessments of the Irish banks; the person who paid for the assessments; if the assessments will have to be done in full again as part of the EU-wide stress tests later in the year; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8279/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs the Deputy will be aware the Central Bank undertook the Balance Sheet Assessment (BSA) of covered banks in 2013 in accordance with a framework and requirements agreed with the Troika as part of the exit of the Programme. Boston Consulting Group (BCG) was contracted as independent assessors and to provide project management resources. E&Y was contracted to conduct the loan file and impairment model reviews of AIB and PTSB. KPMG was contracted to conduct the loan file and impairment model reviews of Bank of Ireland. Third party costs for the BSA have still to be finalised, however it is expected that the final cost will be approximately €11 million, including VAT. The CBI is responsible for paying for these services as the contractee. However all costs incurred on the Financial Measures Programme are 100% recovered from the covered banks subject to the reviews.
In common with all other significant banks in the Eurozone, the Irish banks are required to undergo a Comprehensive Assessment (CA) prior to the ECB assuming responsibility as the competent supervisory authority in November this year (2014). The CA has a number of components including an Asset Quality Review (AQR) and a Stress Test. The SSM AQR is similar to the CBI BSA exercise conducted in 2013 and accordingly the work performed in the BSA will go some way to satisfying the AQR requirements and informing the CA results.
