State's stake in Bank of Ireland falls below 3%

Last June, the State began the process of selling some of its shareholding, which at that time stood at 13.9%. Picture: Denis Minihane.

The State has reduced its stake in Bank of Ireland to below 3% today.

The stake in the bank, which is held by the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF), has declined from 3.996% to 2.956%.

The 3% level is a key marker for Irish publicly-quoted companies, as stakes above this size are required to be disclosed to the stock market.

Last June, the State began the process of selling some of its shareholding, which at that time stood at 13.9%.

During the financial crisis, Bank of Ireland recieved €4.7bn from the State to keep it afloat.

To date, Bank of Ireland has now returned approximately €6.5bn to the State. This was carried out through the repayment of bailout bonds, share sales, dividends, coupons and guarantee fees.

The ongoing share selling process was orginally scheduled to finish in January 2022. However, last month Minister for Finance Paschal Donohue extended the deadline.

Last month, the Irish Examiner reported that AIB is to return €64m to the State between May and the end of the year as part of a €91m share buyback scheme.

The State is currently AIB's largest shareholder with a stake of just under 70%. 

The buyback programme will be in addition to the payment of a proposed €122m cash dividend to all shareholders. It means the State expects to receive a total of approximately €149m from the company by December 31.