Banks’ shareholders should be media-smart

I HOPE the shareholders at the Bank of Ireland EGM on January 12 do not make the same mistake as the AIB shareholders did at their EGM where speaker after speaker berated the directors saying what a mess they had made, etc., and quite forgetting that the world’s media was looking in. Instead of encouraging investors they were joining in with the Irish and English media in scaring them off.

The Sunday Business Post was most successful in this 13 or 14 months ago, as was RTÉ.

I believe that before they did this, AIB and Bank of Ireland were in a position to weather the economic storm. In spite of all the hype no one has yet got to the bottom of why there was a world meltdown. A clue may be the Canadian banks, which have come out well. As well as being run by prudent Presbyterians, the Canadians know more about the US than we do – they may have been aware of the activities of American gangsters and avoided them.

It is in the interests of bank shareholders and taxpayers to build confidence again in our banks, pointing out their strengths such as they are exceptionally profitable both of them and stop playing on the uncertainty of the value of property at this time.

With a little luck, NAMA will put a floor price on property. It is time now for positive talk and constructive ideas.

Adrian Cosby

Stradbally Hall

Stradbally

Co Laois