Friday 10 December 2010

Ireland looks to Gulf to buy its banks

Top Irish officials have approached Gulf sovereign wealth funds to gauge interest in the sale of Ireland's banks after the €85 billion (Dh412.26bn) bailout from European governments and the IMF.

John Bruton, a former Irish prime minister, is leading a delegation from the country on a whistle-stop tour of the region as Ireland prepares to sell assets.

Irish officials are visiting sovereign funds in the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, where they have already met Prince Alwaleed bin Talal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the chief of Kingdom Holding and one of the world's 20 richest men. Mr Bruton is the head of the International Financial Services Centre in Ireland, which aims to attract financial companies to set up there.

No comments:

Post a Comment