Key banks hit by pre-NAMA volatility

PRE-NAMA volatility hit the banks again yesterday, with the share price of the two main beneficiaries of the proposed “bad bank” project falling back from gains made on Friday.

Comments from Finance Minister, Brian Lenihan – before a Dáil Committee, yesterday – that the Government would attempt to pay for assets only at current market values, followed talk over the weekend that NAMA payments to the banks could be made on a phased basis, resulted in both of the main banking stocks falling yesterday.

AIB fell by nearly 5%, or 13c, to €2.67 (down from a closing price of €2.80 on Friday) and Bank of Ireland shed nearly 8%, or 21c, to fall back to €2.50; after reaching €2.71 on Friday. The ISEQ, as a whole, was down by 0.61%, yesterday, closing at just over 3,096 points.