FEW could have predicted that the latest entrant to the mortgage market could have grown up from the success of cereal crops in Wexford.

The company taking over €250m of Bank of Ireland mortgages has applied to the Central Bank for full authorisation and intends to fully comply with all codes related to mortgage lending and arrears.

Bank of Ireland has been ordered by the European Commission to sell off parts of a subsidiary in compensation for its state aid.

It is believed that Bank of Ireland is in talks with the European Commission about retaining New Ireland Assurance, but no decision has been made on its future.

The cost of funding tracker mortgages is one of the reasons banks are charging higher interest on their variable rate mortgages.

Bank of Ireland and ICS Building Society are to increase all variable mortgage interest rates by 0.5%.

The High Court has struck off a Cork-based solicitor found by the Law Society’s disciplinary tribunal to have improperly used client monies to fund her property portfolio.

A former Eircom director who defrauded a building society out of €1.4 million for the purpose of setting up a lottery in Peru has been jailed for four years.

A mortgage debt forgiveness group has described a bank settlement on a nurse’s €170,000 debt as “a watershed moment” for those facing life-long debt.

An accountant has been told by a judge to hand his €2m family home at Brighton Road, Rathgar, Dublin, back to the ICS Building Society.

BANK of Ireland has won EU approval for government help after it agreed to reduce reliance on wholesale funding and focus on “balanced risk” lending in Britain and Ireland.

INDEPENDENT candidate Mary Davis earned over €390,000 in fees from state and private-sector boards over the last decade.

Presidential candidate Mary Davis has today revealed that she earned more than €390,000 for her work on various State and non-State boards over the past decade.

A recent case highlighted how firms and employees need to be aware of data laws, says Diarmaid Condon

THE Employment Appeals Tribunal (EAT) has ruled that two former Bank of Ireland staff were unfairly sacked over their role in circulating “offensive and disturbing” emails.

THE number of mortgage holders falling into arrears is set to increase further, says international credit rating agency, Fitch.

HUNDREDS of Bank of Ireland employees were involved in passing around emails which senior bank managers deemed offensive and inappropriate, it was claimed yesterday.

OFFENSIVE emails were circulated by a core group of people within a division of the Bank of Ireland, an Employment Appeals Tribunal has heard.

THE circulation and distribution of offensive and inappropriate emails between junior staff and their superiors was “endemic” within a division of the Bank of Ireland, an Employment Appeals Tribunal has heard.

BANK of Ireland is confident that the European Commission will approve its altered restructuring plan, allowing it to retain ownership of the well-performing ICS Building Society.

BANK of Ireland said yesterday there is a risk the bank may delist from the ISE and LSE depending on participation in its proposed liability management exercise and rights issue.

INTERNATIONAL credit rating agency Moody’s Investors Service has downgraded the long- term deposit ratings of Ireland’s government-protected banks — effectively classifying them as junk status, or non-investment grade.

HOMEOWNERS could be hit with two more interest rate hikes this year if the Government fails to deliver on a commitment to stop banks passing on rises to mortgage holders.

European Central Bank president Jean Claude Trichet is insisting that today's interest rate hike does not spell the start of a series of increases.

There are concerns that a two-speed housing market could emerge, putting further pressure on people living in rural Ireland.

Niamh Hennessy looks at the bank meltdown, bailouts, rescue plans and protests of the year gone by

ALMOST two out of three people (62%) say they are worse off now than this time last year.

IRISH Life & Permanent (IL&P) was one of the strong climbers on a generally good day for the ISEQ yesterday, on the back of a better-than-expected set of interim results and a determined outlook on potential acquisition activity.

INTERNATIONAL financial services company State Street is understood to be interested in acquiring Bank of Ireland Asset Management (BIAM), although an execution of the deal is not anticipated in the short-term.

BANK of Ireland’s first-half losses were not as bad as some analysts forecast, and that in itself is good news for the group that has been slowly clawing its way back from the abyss.

BANK of Ireland is to axe a further 750 staff after receiving approval from the European Commission for a major restructuring plan.

Seven-hundred-and-fifty jobs are to go at Bank of Ireland.

BANK of Ireland must dispose of key assets by the end of 2014, share its facilities such as ATMs with smaller competitors and make it easier for its customers to change banks.

The European Commission has today approved the €3.5bn state recapitalisation of Bank of Ireland in 2009.

IRISH Life & Permanent has definite plans to develop the banking arm of its business, but will wait until the restructuring of the other banks have been put in place before any moves are made.

BANK of Ireland has announced details of a proposed €3.42 billion capital raising initiative,effectively ending speculation that it could end up in majority state ownership.

BANK of Ireland plans to sell off such assets as ICS Building Society and New Ireland Assurance in a move the Unite union said will put 1,000 jobs in jeopardy.

THE ISEQ index dropped 4.49 points to close at 3,337.69. Bank of Ireland said it expects to sell some of its business divisions in order to gain European Commission approval for its State aid and restructuring plans.

Around 1,000 jobs were threatened today as Bank of Ireland revealed it will sell off a number of its subsidiaries.

WITH announcements yesterday that Bank of Ireland and EBS Building Society are to raise interest rates, many homeowners are wondering whether now may be the time to fix their mortgage.

ANOTHER year of gloom on the jobs front is expected after the Central Bank said no improvement was likely before late 2011.

Trade union chiefs threatened strikes over the devastating Bank of Scotland (Ireland) job losses tonight and warned they will fight any other cuts in the sector.

THE state-owned Anglo Irish Bank looks set to halt interest payments on some of its subordinated notes as it seeks to redeem up to €3.25 billion of debt.