Davy breaches are not criminal offences, Oireachtas told 

Davy stockbrokers sought to 'minimise and mischaracterise' Anglo Irish Bank bond deal but the regulatory breaches were not criminal offences, Oireachtas Finance Committee was told

Davy was fined €4.1m for its failure to supervise a group of 16 of its employees in their 2014 profiting from personal dealings in the sale of Anglo Irish Bank bonds. Picture: Niall Carson/PA Wire

Davy stockbrokers sought to "minimise and mischaracterise" the deal which has rocked the financial sector, but the regulatory breaches were not criminal offences, an Oireachtas committee has been told.

However, the Central Bank has said it is satisfied to discuss the findings of its investigation with the gardaí and the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement.

Following a Central Bank probe, Davy was fined €4.1m for its failure to supervise a group of 16 of its employees in their 2014 profiting from personal dealings in the sale of Anglo Irish Bank bonds.

Speaking at the Oireachtas Finance Committee, Derville Rowland, the director-general of Financial Conduct at the Central Bank, said Davy had been asked for a "strong public statement" at the conclusion of the investigation but it was not forthcoming.

Under questioning from Fianna Fáil's Jim O'Callaghan, she added the company had "wilfully withheld" information from the Central Bank's team.

She said the Central Bank saw that the deal put "profit and gain" of senior staff above their regulatory duties.

The breaches made by the 16 staff were not criminal offences under the Markets in Financial Investments Directive, Ms Rowland said. 

Sinn Féin's Pearse Doherty said the story of Davy was "one of personal greed" and asked if the 16 individuals would face an investigation. 

We can't understand how, after a six year investigation, that DAVY gets a reduction of 30% in the fine. The fine was suppose to be € 5.9M it was reduced €4.13M in accordance with an 'early settlement' discount scheme @PearseDoherty #davystockbrokers https://t.co/UEmbTBdYei pic.twitter.com/J7ofUblewd

— Mick Caul (@caulmick) March 9, 2021

Ms Rowland pointed to the Davy statement which said all of the individuals were no longer working at the firm. 

She said the Central Bank had "hard-fought the outcome" of the investigation which has "given Davy a moment of reckoning". 

She added that the Central Bank would "keep all of its options open" with regard to future sanction.

The Central Bank's investigation was "diligent and resolute" and showed its "commitment to holding firms to account", Ms Rowland added.

Fine Gael's Neale Richmond asked Ms Rowland for details of the Central Bank's enforcement staffing numbers, which Ms Rowland said was between 120 and 130. 

She said the Central Bank was adequately resourced throughout the investigation but accepted the investigation took "longer than people would wish", stressing that it required a "multi-skilled team" of lawyers and bankers.