Liabilities of Irish banks ‘overstated’

IN a new note on the Irish banks one of the country’s leading stockbrokers said yesterday that liabilities of the Irish banks under government guarantee have been “dangerously overstated by some recent commentary”.

The true liabilities of the Irish system, which covers the six banks under the state guarantee, is €575 billion, or 309% of GDP, according to Davy Stockbrokers.

These are the third highest in the EU and are substantially over the €440bn guarantee in place by the government for the two years to end September 2010.