The Rise and Fall of Anglo Irish Bank

Anglo Irish Bank was founded in 1782 and was one of Ireland's largest financial institutions. It was a major player in the Irish banking sector for over two centuries.

In the early 2000s, Anglo Irish Bank experienced rapid growth, fueled by a surge in property prices and a lax regulatory environment. This led to a significant increase in the bank's assets and profits.

However, the bank's growth was built on shaky ground, with many of its loans being used to finance property developments that were ultimately unsustainable. This would ultimately contribute to the bank's downfall.

The Golden Circle refers to a group of senior executives who were heavily involved in the financial dealings of Anglo Irish Bank. Seán FitzPatrick, the former chairman, issued a statement on December 18, 2008, linking his resignation to an €87 million loan he had from the bank.

FitzPatrick's resignation was followed by that of other top executives, including David Drumm, who announced he would step down with immediate effect on December 19, 2008. Drumm cited the strong statement of support for the bank and its recapitalization programme by the Minister for Finance as a reason for his resignation.

The Golden Circle was also known for its close relationships and loyalty to one another. Bradshaw, a former executive, had held a loan jointly with FitzPatrick, which was temporarily transferred to another bank without his knowledge.

On January 7, 2009, Willie McAteer resigned as finance director and chief risk officer, further weakening the Golden Circle's grip on the bank.

Anglo Irish Bank reported a loss of €12.7 billion for the 15 months to December 2009, with an operating profit before impairment of €2.4 billion and an impairment charge of €15.1 billion.

The bank's total assets declined to €85.2 billion at the end of 2009 from €101.3 billion in September 2008. Anglo Irish Bank is the largest contributor to Ireland's "bad bank", the National Asset Management Agency, and expects to transfer loans with a nominal value of €35.6 billion to NAMA over 2010.

The bank's Core Tier 1 and total regulatory capital were €5 billion and €8 billion respectively at the end of 2009, versus risk-weighted assets of €73 billion.

Empg loans are a type of loan that can be used to cover emergency expenses, and they often have higher interest rates compared to other types of loans.

These loans typically have shorter repayment periods, usually ranging from a few months to a year, and are often used to cover unexpected expenses such as car repairs or medical bills.

Empg loans often require a credit check and may have fees associated with them.

The Quinn Group has a significant amount of loans from Anglo Irish Bank, totaling around €2.8 billion.

The Quinn family is also estimated to have around €2.8 billion of loans from Anglo Irish Bank.

These loans are substantial and need to be re-financed this year, with around €780 million requiring a new financial arrangement.

The Quinn Group has estimated that it only needs a cash injection of between €100 million and €150 million to resolve its financial issues.

Anglo Irish Bank was reportedly considering a €700 million financial rescue of the Quinn Group, which would have seen the bank become the majority shareholder in the Quinn Group.

However, the Quinn Group has rejected this proposal and instead suggested that a re-financing would not necessarily increase the overall debt of the Group.

Anglo Irish Bank reported a staggering loss of €12.7 billion for the 15 months to December 2009.

The bank's operating profit before impairment was a respectable €2.4 billion, but it was overshadowed by impairment charges of €15.1 billion, which drove the overall result.

Total assets declined from €101.3 billion in September 2008 to €85.2 billion at the end of 2009.

This significant decline in assets was largely due to the bank's substantial capital investment in the government, which helped offset provisions.

The bank's Core Tier 1 and total regulatory capital were €5 billion and €8 billion respectively at the end of 2009, which was a far cry from the risk-weighted assets of €73 billion.

The QUINN group and related companies were also mentioned in the bank's 2009 Annual Report, where it stated that the High Court in Ireland appointed two joint provisional administrators to a significant corporate borrower of the Group.

This development had the potential to negatively impact impairment charges in 2010, and the Group was closely monitoring the situation.

Anglo Irish Bank is expected to transfer loans with a nominal value of €35.6 billion to the National Asset Management Agency over 2010, which would see the risk-weighted-assets fall to €43 billion.

The Irish Exchange was severely impacted by the Anglo Irish Bank crisis. The bank's shares were suspended on the Dublin and London Stock Exchanges on 15 January 2009 after the Government of Ireland nationalised the bank.

Anglo Irish Bank's nationalisation led to a significant drop in the market value of other large banks. The market value of the other two large banks fell by up to 50% on 19 January 2009.

The nationalisation of Anglo Irish Bank also affected the Irish Stock Exchange. On 19 January 2009, the balance of the Board who had served while FitzPatrick was chairman resigned.

The resignation of key figures from Anglo Irish Bank continued in the following weeks. On 7 January 2009, Willie McAteer resigned his position as finance director and chief risk officer.

The Irish Stock Exchange was also impacted by the departure of key figures. On 23 February 2009, Anne Heraty unexpectedly resigned from the board of the ISEQ, causing the Dublin's ISEQ index to fall over 3% to stand at 1,987, a 14-year low.