AIB’s top managers to quit

AIB’s two leading executives are to quit their posts.

The bank’s chief executive, Colm Doherty, who took up the job as managing director last November, is to leave by the year end.

Executive chairman Dan O’Connor will leave office within a matter of weeks.

Finance Minister Brian Lenihan thanked both men for their contribution to the bank in “very difficult circumstances” but refused to be drawn on whether they decided to quit of their own volition or if they had been asked to step down.

Mr Lenihan smiled when asked about the departure of the two key executives, saying the decision emerged when the level of bad debt facing the bank was being reassessed by the Central Bank and the regulator.

“The bank needs a new beginning so it can be restored to its former greatness”, he added.

Prior to Mr Doherty’s appointment, the Government signalled a strong preference for an outsider to be given the job, but the board said the €500,000 salary cap prevented them from attracting the right caliber of person from outside.