State considering Irish Life IPO

It is believed that one of the firms advising the Government on the sale of the state-owned Irish Life favours an initial public offering (IPO) in roughly 12 months’ time, according to a source familiar with the situation.

However, a trade sale is still the Department of Finance’s preferred option to offload the company with the sale most likely taking place in early 2014, according to another source.

The Government is in preliminary talks with a number of advisers about the future of Irish Life. It is expected that Deutsche Bank will be appointed lead adviser when the official sales process begins.