Slip of the tongue from 1st shareholder to ask a question at BOI AGM, praises new Chairman’s “expensive” experience instead of “extensive”
— Brian O’Donovan (@BrianODTV3) April 24, 2013
Former Lloyds TSB banker Archie Kane was appointed chairman of Bank of Ireland last summer, a reported €390,000-a-year position.
Shane Ross reported at the time:
“A little digging does not soothe the soul. It is deeply disturbing. The news from Scotland about Archie was not reassuring.”
“Richie Boucher will be delighted to learn of the type of paydays Archie has enjoyed over the last 10 years as a director of the ailing Lloyds Bank. But even Richie might wonder why Archie left Lloyds last year, seemingly at the height of his earning power.”
“Richie might wonder how Lloyds was prepared to lose a man of such talent, whom it had rewarded for a decade with the sort of outlandish take-home pay that would make Michael Fingleton blush. Yet Lloyds let him go.”
“On March 1, 2011, a new chief executive, Antonio Horta-Osorio, arrived in Lloyds from Spain’s Santander Bank. Within weeks, long-time Lloyds insurance boss Kane and its retail boss Helen Weir had retired. Reuters described the speed of the departures as a “boardroom cull”. The Mail Online said Kane had been “shown the door”.
“Kane’s insurance division had been regarded as a moderately successful arm of the troubled bank, justifying his sky-high bonuses during his 10 years in the boardroom. Yet just a month after he left Lloyds, a landmark court case found that Lloyds and other banks were liable for vast compensation payments to clients who were victims of mis-selling of insurance policies.”
“The offending policy was known as Payment Protection Insurance (PPI), a product designed to compensate vulnerable borrowers who lose their jobs or become too sick to work. PPI was a paradise for unscrupulous sales people. Tens of thousands of Lloyds clients were victims.”
“Lloyds was the worst PPI sinner of all the UK banks, although the mis-selling scam was widespread.”
“Lloyds threw in the towel. The new chief executive decreed that the bank must set aside £3.2bn to pay compensation to customers who were victims of the mis-selling. The bank was forced to declare a loss of over £3bn for the year.”
“The bank never suggested that Kane had deliberately mis-sold PPI products. Yet nine months after he left, in February this year, it made a dramatic announcement. The Daily Telegraph carried the story: “Lloyds Bank strips 13 directors of more than £2m in bonuses”.
“Among the five executive directors stripped of their 2010 bonuses was Archie Kane, now governor of the Bank of Ireland. It was the first ever clawback of its kind. The reason given was the bank’s role in the mis-selling of PPI.”
“Kane and three others were ordered to surrender 25 per cent of their 2010 bonuses. Kane had received a bonus of £767,000. He was compelled to forgo £190,000 of it.”
…
“The appointment of Kane is a banker’s response to the sacrifices made by the people of Ireland to rescue the Bank of Ireland. The board has delivered the ultimate insult, confirmation that in Ireland the banker is still boss.
From the board’s point of view they made the ideal choice. Governor Kane will fit in perfectly with the prevailing culture at the Bank of Ireland and the deteriorating standards at the Central Bank. Although he is one of the first bankers ever to have been forced to return a bonus, he is still up there with the best of the £10m plutocrats. He will understand Richie Boucher perfectly. Nothing has changed.”
Meanwhile:
“F-you Richie Boucher” says one Bank of Ireland shareholder but the next one to speak praises the CEO #TV3News
— Brian O’Donovan (@BrianODTV3) April 24, 2013
Pic: Brian O’Donovan
Shane Ross: No bonus for B of I governor (Sunday Independent)
