Michael Murray: Prospective investors in AIB need transparency

Bank results confirm utility type returns, but any prospective investor in AIB’s mooted equity raising will be well served by increased transparency in balance sheet make-up

Everything has changed: the leadership teams, the incentives, the scope of activity, the strategies, the relative paucity of opportunities, the change in the nature of the threats and the quality and more intrusive nature of the regulatory supervision and framework.

Few taxpayers who, after all, hold the imposed lion’s share of the equity in the Irish banks, will regret or disapprove of the transformation, especially if AIB is successful with a new equity ...