Deals
Ireland Seizes Allied Irish, Fourth Bank Nationalized
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Ireland’s High Court said Allied Irish Banks Plc can be taken over by the government without shareholder approval as the lender became the fourth bank to fall under state control since 2008.
Finance Minister Brian Lenihan secured approval from the Dublin-based court today to inject 3.7 billion euros ($4.8 billion) into the lender by Dec. 31 and raise its stake to 92 percent from 19 percent, the Finance Ministry said in a statement. Allied Irish, Ireland’s largest company by market value in 2007, recorded its biggest share price drop in 22 months in Dublin trading. Valued at almost 21 billion euros at its peak, the bank’s market capitalization today was 347 million euros.