THE IRISH INDEPENDENT has published more details of recorded conversations between senior executives at the former Anglo Irish Bank during the period of the fateful bank guarantee of late 2008.
But one of the more peculiar revelations from the recordings released today is the hold music that is played down the phone as John Bowe, the former head of capital markets, waits to speak to CEO David Drumm.
YouTube: TheFugeesVEVO
Yes indeed, none other than The Fugees’ ‘Ready Or Not’.
Meanwhile here are a few choice quotes from the latest conversation released by the Irish Independent. This, between Bowe and Drumm, was a conversation recorded two days after the bank guarantee in October 2008:
John Bowe likes to sing to David Drumm on the phone:
Drumm: “Ah, you’re abusing that guarantee. Paying too much in Germany I heard now as well. F**king ridiculous, John.”Bowe: (singing) “Deutschland, Deutschland, Ubber Alles” (both laugh)
Drumm jokes about recording the calls:
“I just should be recording these calls for the f**king craic – or at least making notes.”
Drumm wants to get the money in:
Drumm: “We won’t do anything blatant, but, _ , we have to get the money in. Well we’ll have to f**kin’ tiddly-winkle for it.”Bowe: “So I’m just saying to the guys: ‘Look, just be smart, don’t be stupid, get it in, don’t be overtly pumping it so that somebody can quote you… but we want to get the liquidity ratios up.’”
Drumm: “Correct and right. So okay so just keep nursing along….
Bowe: “We will. Now I have… sorry go on.”
Drumm: “… jack the rates up. That’s what I really meant, get the f**king money in, get it in.”
Bowe and (former director of retail banking Peter) Fitzgerald agree that the State taking over the bank would be “fantastic”:
Bowe: “That would be fantastic, if it was nationalisation we’d all keep our jobs.”Fitzgerald: “It would be fantastic, wouldn’t it?”
Bowe: “Yeah… civil servants, you know.”
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