AIB's share trading plan extended until January 2023

The share trading plan was due to cease by 10 July 2022. However, today's extension will mean the plan will now terminate by 24 January 2023. Picture: Leah Farrell / RollingNews.ie

Minister for Finance, Paschal Donohoe, announced the extension of the AIB Group share trading plan in a statement today. 

Since its launch in December 2021, the share trading plan has generated around €61m in proceeds and reduced the State’s stake in AIB Group from 71.12% to approximately 68%.

The average price per share currently stands at €2.32 to date.

The share trading plan was due to cease by 10 July 2022. However, today's extension will mean the plan will now terminate by 24 January 2023, unless further extended by the Minister.

Minister Donohoe said: “When I announced the launch of the share trading plan last December, I said that the State’s exit from its investment in AIB would be a multi-year journey, so it is important, and I believe it is in the taxpayers’ best interest, to extend the share trading plan for a further period."

"I will continue to keep other monetisation options open, should these opportunities present themselves," he added.

The shares will not be sold for less than a pre-determined floor price, which the Department of Finance will review.

Merrill Lynch International is acting on behalf of the Minister in executing the share trading plan. 

The number of shares sold will depend on market conditions, amongst other factors.

Last month, AIB announced it had completed its €91m share buyback programme.

The bank purchased over 2.2m shares, with the highest price paid for a share standing at €2.4780 and the lowest price was €2.4340.

Over 690,000 shares were bought through Goodbody Stockbrokers by way of an on-market buyback. The remainder of the shares were purchased as directed buyback.

AIB had purchased nearly 41m shares as part of the buyback programme. The shares were bought at a volume weighted average price of €2.2221 per share.

As the bank's largest shareholder at just under 70%, the Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe said in May that he had accepted an offer from AIB to buy back a significant number of shares in the bank.

The buyback programme will be in addition to the payment of a proposed €122m cash dividend to all shareholders.

Yesterday, AIB was hit with a record fine of €83.3m for its role in the tracker mortgage scandal.

EBS, owned by AIB, was fined €13.4m for consumer protection breaches during the tracker mortgage scandal. Their combined fine brings the total sum to a combined €96.7m.