Boyle expects majority state holding in AIB

ALLIED Irish Banks will be effectively nationalised by the end of the year, according to the Green Party finance spokesperson, Dan Boyle.

He said that while the troubled bank will raise significant equity through the sale of its assets, including Polish and British operations, the state will still need to take a majority share if AIB is to have sufficient capital.

The taxpayer has already given €3.5 billion to AIB, which last week reported losses of €2bn, and it will need to raise €7.4bn if it is to meet capital reserve rules put down by the Financial Regulator.