BANK GUARANTEE:THE BOARDS of the Central Bank and the Irish Financial Services Regulatory Authority met last night to finalise the terms and conditions of the Government's €400 billion bank guarantee scheme.
The two boards, including Central Bank governor John Hurley, were deciding on specific provisions relating to how the scheme would work, including the charge to the banks involved, the appointment of public representatives to bank boards and executive pay.
The regulatory authorities are also assessing how the charge will apply and the risk weighting of the fee to each bank, as the higher-risk lenders are likely to pay a greater charge for the guarantee.
A spokesman for the regulatory authorities said work was continuing on the scheme and "specific elements" of its implementation.
The finalised scheme is expected to be forwarded to Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan today and to be approved by Cabinet at a special meeting this evening.
National Irish Bank said yesterday that it would not seek cover under the Government deposit protection scheme following the decision of its Danish parent bank, Danske, to participate in the Danish government's guarantee scheme announced yesterday.
Deposits at NIB are fully guaranteed under the Danish guarantee. The bank had deposits of €3.2 billion at the end of June.
"This move ensures that our customers benefit from a state guarantee that has a similar standing to the . . . Irish Government guarantee scheme," said NIB chief executive Andrew Healy.
The Department of Finance said five foreign-owned Irish banks had applied to join the Irish scheme and that their applications would be treated "sympathetically". Ulster Bank and Halifax-Bank of Scotland (Ireland) have supplied detailed applications.
Postbank, the Irish savings bank which is owned by An Post and Belgian-Dutch group Fortis; Dutch-owned ACC Bank, and Belgian-owned IIB Bank have also applied to join the Irish guarantee.
A spokesman for the department said South African bank Investec, whose Irish business operates as a branch of its UK bank, had expressed an interest in joining the guarantee scheme.
Investec, where deposits are covered up to £50,000 (€64,300) under the UK deposit guarantee scheme, has said it would examine the terms and conditions of the scheme when it was published.
Leeds Building Society, which started accepting Irish deposits in July, said it was "investigating the options available . . . in this rapidly changing environment".
