The special liquidators of Anglo Irish Bank now only have loans with a face value of less than €500 million remaining to be sold in what has been the biggest liquidation in Irish corporate history.
This means the bank which has become synonymous with Ireland’s economic collapse is now essentially no more.
A small number of loans that the bank has not been able to sell – including borrowings of the family of Seán Quinn, which are the subject of litigation – will be worked out by a legacy unit of less than 50 people.
Anglo Irish Bank and Irish Nationwide's special liquidators KPMG accountants Kieran Wallace and Eamonn Richardson started their liquidation in February last year with loans with a face-value of €23 billion to sell.
In total, the special liquidators have completed 70 loan portfolio sales in Ireland, the UK and the US, repaying €13 billion to the State.
Revenue Commissioners
The special liquidators are also expected to pay between €500 million and €600 million to the Revenue Commissioners from the sales process.
The sale process has also recovered enough money to pay off most or all subordinated junior bondholders, who are owed €280 million. However, these bondholders will only be paid if litigation against the bank by the family of Seán Quinn fails, and the case could take until 2020 to conclude.
Closed last week
The first loan portfolio to be sold was Project Evergreen, a corporate loan portfolio of €2.5 billion relating to businesses including
TV3
and
Topaz
. The last loan portfolio sale, which closed last week, was called Project Quartz, a €1 billion book of assorted quality property loans.
The special liquidators will sell one remaining large loan relating to an upmarket hotel in Boston in the New Year. The few hundred loans remaining in the bank will then go into its legacy unit.
IBRC, the new name for Anglo and Irish Nationwide, employed 1,000 people when it was liquidated but it now only has 200 staff. This will fall to between 30 and 50 by March.
Remaining staff in the bank will work primarily in its legacy unit and support services. The biggest single client of this unit will be the family of Seán Quinn. Their assets, including a skyscraper in Russia and a large property in India, are subject of Irish and international litigation.
Oil in Nigeria
A loan relating to an oil well in Nigeria, which is backed by former Anglo chairman Seán FitzPatrick and former bank director
Lar Bradshaw
, will also go into this unit.
This loan has been hard to sell because of declining oil prices and other complications related to the offshore find in pirate-infested waters.
In addition, loans relating to Anglo's former chief executive David Drumm will go into this unit.
About 13,000 companies and individuals including well known names such as billionaire Denis O'Brien, businessman Paddy McKillen and Dragon's Den's Duncan Bannatyne were among the clients of the bank affected by its dramatic liquidation in February last year.
