Anglo Irish Bank management discussed disguising short-terms loans of €750m from Irish Life and Permanent and keeping the details “tight as a duck’s arse”, the trial of former banking executives has heard.

Then taoiseach Brian Cowen set up a “secret” group to examine a possible bank guarantee months before it happened — and as bankers and billionaires were actively lobbying for the move.

The State requires an enlarged jury panel to deal with the case of former Anglo Irish Bank executive William McAteer and three co-accused, the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard this morning.

Criminal proceedings following the collapse of the former Anglo Irish Bank could run for years, the High Court has been told.

Three former senior bank executives are to stand trial accused of conspiring to mislead Anglo Irish Bank investors by transferring €7.2bn to Anglo to give the impression it had larger deposits.

Three former bank executives are to stand trial charged with a €7.2bn fraud conspiracy.

The Justice Minister has today called on former Anglo Irish Bank chairman David Drumm to face questions by investigators probing fraud at the bank.

Pensions and life assurance company Irish Life has been sold by the Government for €1.3bn.

A director of Permanent TSB has described as “an egregious breach of court process” a court bid by the bank and a group of directors to prevent any action aimed at disqualifying any of the directors from involvement in the management of a company.

Irish Life Group Ltd chief Kevin Murphy postponed his plans to retire at the end of 2012 as the Government revived talks to sell the state-owned insurer to Canada’s Great-West Lifeco Inc.

Standard and Poor's has raised its rating for Irish Life after its separation from PTSB.

The proposed €1.3bn sale of Irish Life and Permanent’s life assurance business, the Irish Life Group, to the Minister for Finance undervalues the company’s “crown jewels”, it was claimed before the High Court yesterday.

At moments of frightening flux, certainty is the most precious gold.

Permanent TSB is set to survive and will become a more competitive bank, Irish Life & Permanent (IL&P) management said at the group’s annual general meeting yesterday.

Irish Life and Permanent is on the verge of availing of a “bad bank” in which it could transfer Permanent TSB’s loss-making home loans, it emerged last night.

The Iseq index fell sharply on Monday to close down 70.20 points at 3,162.44, in line with European and world markets.

Shareholders of Irish Life & Permanent have brought a legal challenge aimed at setting aside the High Court’s approval for Finance Minister Michael Noonan to purchase the group’s life assurance business, the Irish Life Group, for €1.3bn.

The newest member of the Irish Life & Permanent has accused the Minister for Finance, Michael Noonan, of acting improperly and trying to get his hands on the company’s profitable insurance business.

Another set of all-too predictably depressing results for Permanent TSB only serves to make the bank’s future more uncertain than ever.

The life and pensions division of the soon-to-be carved up Irish Life & Permanent (IL&P) group saw operating profits fall from €212m to €96m last year due to equity and bond market turmoil.

The life and pensions division of bailed-out finance house Irish Life & Permanent (IL&P) has been bought by the Government for €1.3bn.

The Irish Association of Pension Funds has hit out at the Government for hesitating over its plans to provide for people losing out from defined benefit pension scheme failures.

The ISEQ index made ground yesterday, adding 27.17 points to close the week at 3266.16.

Irish shares made modest gains on the day that the ECB announced that it had allotted over €529bn to 800 European banks.

Impairment charges at Permanent TSB are likely to have increased by €1bn during 2011, the bank’s management said last night.

The ISEQ index dropped slightly yesterday, bucking the trend seen on most European bourses.

A company director who was voted on to the board of Irish Life & Permanent Group Holdings lost his court bid yesterday to force the company to immediately complete his appointment.

A High Court judge hopes to be in a position to give judgment on the minister for finance’s bid to halt a number of legal challenges to the Government’s recapitalisation of Irish Life and Permanent early next month.

A High Court judge hopes to be in a position to give judgment on the Minister for Finance's bid to halt a number of legal challenges to the Government's recapitalisation of Irish Life and Permanent early next month.

A number of legal challenges brought against the Government’s recapitalisation of Irish Life & Permanent should be struck out because those taking the actions lack the legal standing to do so, lawyers for the Minister for Finance argued yesterday.

The High Court has ruled that an Irish Life & Permanent shareholder’s challenge against the Government’s recapitalisation of the bank was brought within the allowed time period.

The High Court has ruled that an Irish Life & Permanent shareholder's challenge against the Government's recapitalisation of the bank was brought within the allowed time period.

A man who bought €200,000 of shares in Irish Life & Permanent is to appeal a High Court ruling that he is not legally entitled to represent the company in proceedings challenging the Government’s recapitalisation of IL&P.

A man whose company bought some €200,000 of shares in Irish Life & Permanent in 2010 is to appeal a High Court Judge's ruling that he is not legally entitled to represent the company in proceedings challenging the Government's recapitalisation of the bank.

A High Court judge has begun a hearing to decide key preliminary issues in actions by a number of shareholders in Irish Life and Permanent and others to the Government’s recapitalisation of the bank.

The Government’s belief that it has drawn a line under its banking crisis will be tested this week when a dissident Irish Life and Permanent shareholder attempts to overturn the bancassurer’s recapitalisation and effective nationalisation.

BANK of Ireland Plc and Irish Life & Permanent Plc had their credit ratings affirmed by Standard & Poor’s, along with two other banks, and were given negative outlooks.

FORMER Barclays Bank executive, Jeremy Masding has been appointed chief executive of the enlarged banking division of Irish Life & Permanent (IL&P).

The Central Bank of Ireland today (8 December 2011) published the results for the 2011 EU-wide stress test on Irish banks.

THE Government may have to pump a further €1 billion-plus into stricken Irish Life & Permanent after failing to sell off its profitable Irish Life assurance arm of the business.

IRISH Life & Permanent (IL&P) has raised €1.15 billion in fresh funding via two separate transactions.

THE Government is still hopeful of keeping next year’s budgetary adjustment target at €3.6 billion, but said that any increase that might be made will be “marginal”.

A SHAREHOLDER who is challenging the Government’s recapitalisation of Irish Life and Permanent has told the High Court the legal challenge is one of the most important cases in the history of the state.