Vikings plunder Irish market as Danske Bank buys NIB, Northern

THE surprise €1.4 billion purchase by Denmark’s Danske Bank of the Northern Bank and National Irish Bank (NIB) from National Australia Bank (NAB) will not result in any jobs losses among the workforce of 3,100.

NAB has been hawking Northern Bank and NIB for some time and its shares rose 1.75% after the deal was announced. The company expects to make €626m on the sale.

Britain’s biggest mortgage lender, HBOS, walked away from negotiations because NAB’s price was too steep. The Bank of Scotland owner wanted to pay just 1bn and with HBOS’s appetite for an entry point to the Irish market unstated, shares in Irish Life and Permanent surged ahead by 5% yesterday.