The biggest of the payments to Bertie Ahern in 1993 was drawn on a company cheque, The Irish Times has learned. Padraic O'Connor, who was then managing director of NCB Stockbrokers, made the largest of the contributions to Mr Ahern around Christmas 1993 in the first tranche of money that he received.
NCB refused to confirm or deny whether the £5,000 contribution that Mr O'Connor gave the then minister for finance was drawn on one of its accounts.
The company would not say whether it had a record of the payment or whether the contribution was a gift or a loan. Neither would it say whether loan terms were recorded or whether the Taoiseach or any of his associates had ever contacted the company to make a repayment.
Mr Ahern has named Mr O'Connor as one of 12 donors who gave him a total of £22,500 in December 1993. All but one of the donors gave him £2,500, but Mr Ahern did not identify Mr O'Connor as the man who gave him £5,000. Mr O'Connor declined to comment when asked about these matters last night. A spokeswoman for the Taoiseach said she was not in a position to respond before going to press.
NCB's spokesman would not be drawn on whether the company had been contacted by the Mahon tribunal or whether it was co-operating with the tribunal.
Mr Ahern said it was acceptable for him to receive money from close friends at a time of difficulty in his personal life. He also said he did not receive money from "big business".
Mr O'Connor was among senior finance industry figures who advised Mr Ahern during the currency crisis that led him to devalue the Irish pound early in 1993. He was non-executive chairman of State-owned bank ACC from 1999 until 2002.
NCB's biggest shareholder in 1993 was businessman Dermot Desmond. He had relinquished his board and executive functions at NCB in 1991. He became chairman again in 1994, eight months before Ulster Bank acquired NCB for £19.6 million sterling. NCB is now owned by its management and staff and businessman Seán Quinn.
