Former Anglo exec 'quite relaxed' about Maple ten loans
A former executive on the board of Anglo Irish Bank has said he was informed about the Maple ten loans and felt quite relaxed that the transactions were being handled in a proper way.
Declan Quilligan, who headed up the bank's UK operations, has been giving evidence at the trial of former Anglo Chairman Sean FitzPatrick, and directors Pat Whelan and Willie McAteer, who deny providing unlawful financial assistance to the Maple developers and the family of former billionaire Sean Quinn to buy Anglo shares in July 2008.
Declan Quilligan said that by the time the board of Anglo Irish Bank became aware that Sean Quinn had built up a 24% stake in the bank, there was ongoing contact with the Financial Regulator.
However prosecution counsel Paul O'Higgins has suggested that that may be a matter of some controversy.
Mr Quilligan agreed that he himself never met the regulator.
He gave evidence about unsuccesful attempts in the middle of the credit crisis of 2008 to dilute Sean Quinn's interest in the bank which he had built up by gambling on the stock using "contracts for difference".
Mr Quilligan's evidence is that on July 8, Anglo CEO David Drumm told him he was meeting the regulator the next day to go through a proposition that would lead to Anglo lending to a number of high net worth clients of the bank with a view to taking some of the Quinn's stake.
He said Mr Drumm emailed him the following day to say the regulator had agreed to the proposal.
He said he did not meet the Maple ten but he understood loans would be issued.
