The Cayman Islands bank at the centre of the Ansbacher scandal co-operated fully with the High Court inquiry into its affairs, its parent said yesterday. The London-based bank, Ansbacher, said it had not seen the inspectors' report into Ansbacher Cayman, which was presented on Monday to the president of the High Court, Mr Justice Finnegan.
Both the Tánaiste, Ms Harney, and the Director of Corporate Enforcement, Mr Paul Appleby, have said the report should be published. It is believed, however, that individuals featured in it may seek to block publication of their names when Mr Justice Finnegan hears the case again on Monday week.
The bank has complained in recent months about the association of its name with the affair, but said yesterday that it had no immediate comment on the outcome of the investigation. It was aware from press coverage that the final report had been presented to the High Court.
The bank said: "Ansbacher has co-operated fully with the inspectors within the limitations imposed on the bank by the judicial process and, once the report has been received and the bank has had an opportunity to consider its content, a statement will be made."
It added: "Mr Justice Finnegan has requested that no contents of the report are divulged prior to his official pronouncement and so we do not anticipate any of the other parties involved making any statements during this period."
Only rarely has Ansbacher made statements about the inquiry, which was initiated in September 1999 after a separate investigation by an authorised officer acting for Ms Harney.
The initial investigation was triggered by disclosures at the McCracken tribunal about the finances of the former Taoiseach, Mr Charles Haughey.
A number of the State's most prominent political and business figures during the 1970s and 1980s were identified as customers of Ansbacher (Cayman) Ltd, which ran an offshore deposit scheme designed to evade tax.
The system originated in 1971 in the operations of a Guinness & Mahon Ireland subsidiary, Guinness & Mahon Cayman Trust, which was acquired in 1988 by Ansbacher. The new owners later changed the subsidiary's name to Ansbacher (Cayman) Ltd, whose operations were the subject of the 33-month High Court investigation. While the latest Ansbacher statement made no reference to its management of the subsidiary, the bank's chief executive, Mr Richard Spilg, has complained about its association with the affair.
In a letter to The Irish Times two months ago, he claimed the use of the term "Ansbacher deposits" was wrong because the business had been run by Guinness & Mahon for 17 years. "Ansbacher accordingly had no association with this business for that entire period."
