Ireland Readies to Fend Off ‘Vultures’ as NatWest Exits
- U.K. lender in talks to sell loans to AIB, Permanent TSB
- Move would lock investment funds out of mainstream banking
An Ulster Bank branch in Dublin, Ireland, on Feb. 17.
Photographer: Patrick Bolger/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
As NatWest Group Plc’s prepares to sell off about 20 billion euros ($24.2 billion) of loans as part of Ulster Bank’s demise, Ireland’s banks have been handed a head start over their international rivals.
NatWest, which said Friday it’ll close down Ulster in coming years, is already in talks to sell 4 billion euros of commercial loans to AIB Group Plc. It also confirmed “early discussions” with Permanent TSB Group Holdings Plc and other banks about retail loans.