Bank of Ireland has appointed businessman Denis O'Brien as deputy governor, writes Siobhán Creaton, Finance Correspondent
Mr O'Brien (47), who is chairman of the Digicel Group, has been a member of the bank's court of directors since 2000.
His elevation to the deputy governor's role is immediate and is for a two-year term. The role is akin to that of deputy chairman.
Announcing the appointment yesterday, Bank of Ireland governor Richard Burrows said Mr O'Brien had made a significant contribution to the bank during the past five years. "I am pleased he has accepted to become deputy governor and I look forward to working closely with him in the future" he said.
Mr O'Brien steps into the governor's shoes when he is absent and could succeed Mr Burrows. Mr Burrows was deputy governor before taking on that role.
Mr O'Brien was invited to join the Bank of Ireland's court of directors following his success in founding the Esat Digifone group that won the licence to operate the Republic's second mobile phone network in 1996 and which was sold to British Telecom in 2000 for €2.4 billion.
The appointment was viewed with some surprise at the time, given Mr O'Brien's relative youth compared to the Bank of Ireland's other directors who were largely drawn from the ranks of some of the State's biggest public companies.
At the time, Bank of Ireland said its new director would be contributing to the bank's efforts to seek out business opportunities in the high-tech sector, which investors welcomed. The appointment coincided with the height of the telecoms and technology boom.
It did, however, spark some criticism from one of the Republic's most distinguished public servants, Dr Ken Whitaker.
He is said to have written to then governor Laurence Crowley, questioning Mr O'Brien's credentials for inclusion on the bank's board.
The Moriarty tribunal is inquiring into the second mobile phone licence competition. This week, Mr O'Brien's legal team said the tribunal had cost him €7.5 million. A ruling on whether or not the inquiry will be abandoned is expected next week.
Mr O'Brien, who is based in Portugal, is a director of Aergo Capital, the Communicorp Group and Oakhill plc. He is also chairman of the Irish Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year judging panel and is a director of Frontline, the International Foundation for the Protection of Human Rights.
He was chairman of the Special Olympics World Summer Games when they were held in the Republic in 2003.
His Digicel group is expanding to become the biggest mobile phone company in the Caribbean, with plans to operate in 25 countries in the next two years.