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NAMA HAS COME out strongly against a number of claims made against it saying misinformation has been released as part of an “organised campaign to discredit” the agency.
NAMA CEO Brendan McDonagh and chairman Frank Daly were both appearing before the Oireachtas Public Accounts Committee this morning following allegations of illegality at the state’s bad bank.
In a pointed defence to the claims, McDonagh said that NAMA has not itself been provided with the allegations and has only learned about them through the media.
Despite this, McDonagh said this morning that, from what the agency understands of the claims, they are “satisfied that they are unfounded”.
McDonagh address two specific allegations that have been aired by the media and in the Dáil during the week.
The first allegation was a claim by former NAMA employee Enda Farrell that he leaked a ‘full file’ of personal information on property developer Paddy McKillen to a third-party.
McDonagh said that, not only did this claim contradict previous sworn statements by Farrell, but that a review taken over the last 36 hours shows that there was no electronic communications between Farrell and the third-party.
Furthermore, McDonagh said that NAMA holds “very little” information on McKillen because they did not acquire his loads:
NAMA has never possessed this information in relation to Mr. McKillen because, as the Committee will be aware, the NAMA Board took a decision in July 2011 not to acquire Mr McKillen’s loans. Such information is usually provided as part of a debtor’s business plan submission and in this case, as we did not acquire the loans, no business plan was submitted.
NAMA’S Frank Daly says people are trying to discredit NAMA for their own ends. (Pic: Oireachtas/ Screengrab)
Valuations
The second allegation addressed during the committee session was that a claim that NAMA had deliberately manipulated the valuation of property which was collateral for its acquired loans.
“NAMA utterly refutes this allegation,” said McDonagh.
He outlined the property valuation process which he says first involves the relevant financial institution appointing an independent valuer. NAMA then appoint their own valuer which reviews the first valuation, in 88 per cent of cases the NAMA panel accepted the original valuation said McDonagh
In the 12 per cent of cases where there is a difference between the two valuations, a third valuer is appointed and their valuation is accepted.
NAMA’s chairman Frank Daly outlined what he felt was “an organised campaign to hinder effectiveness of NAMA and influence its decisions” but said that NAMA “would not be distracted” from its goals.
“We seem to to be one of the few people in Dublin who aren’t in possession of this allegations,” he added.
Daly said that the agency “does not believe everything our debtors tell us” and questioned the credence that the media and certain politicians have given to the allegations.
McDonagh echoed this claim that people are seeking to harm NAMA for their own ends:
Some will intend to discredit NAMA for their own purpose under theory that if enough mud is thrown some of it will stick. Unfortunately, in every walk of life there are bad eggs but in our case thankfully they have been very few.
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I went into AIB one day to ask them for a print out of my statements for the previous 6 months for the Welfare as I was out of work at the time and I didn’t have a printer. I was told that the charge was €3 per page! I can get 500 sheets of paper off Viking Direct for €3.43. She told me that the total amount of pages was 12 so that would have been €36 for 5 minutes work. I declined her offer and got a friend of mine to print them instead for the price of a cup of coffee.
@Ennui Kenny: social welfare office should accept e statements. Saves time, money and the environment
@Ennui Kenny: well that’s exactly the point. They make it so prohibitively expensive that you go elsewhere and learn how to do it yourself. To be honest it makes sense if it’s only a statement your after.
However, the hours they operate are total bollocks. Those are worth complaining about. Bank of Ireland operate at hours (10:30am to 4pm) safely tucked inside everyone else’s working so they have to deal with as few customers face to face as possible and subsequently have to pay tellers as little as possible also. I might add that actual cash services within those few hours are further restricted again to an even more few hours. And they don’t do all this because they can’t find staff to work the hours. They do it because they’re stingy
@Irish Political GIF: Social welfare won’t accept e statements or even in some cases their own online printed forms.
@Eon Cocker: yes but it goes against the bullshit slogan that “we’re here to help our customers” they omitted the text “for a price” from their slogans.
@Eon Cocker: BOI open from 10am actually.. try getting out of bed half an hour earlier.
@Eon Cocker: BofI are shocking, tried to get a statement off them and three times they sent the wrong ones out, shocking that they could not even do a basic thing like print a statement correctly, I’ll never do business with them again.
I went in to my local bank to ask about a business “Start up Loan” they told me I have to be in business about six months and already have a business account. Which is not a start up Loan.
There’s no competition in the market so there’s no motivation to reform.
Doesn’t help that Rabo Bank left the market.
“Revolut” might put some pressure on some of them with regards card fees with their free model.
@Tom: Ask the central bank why they restrict competition and don’t allow Raisin.com to operate in Ireland. Raisin offer the best deposit rates but the Central bank refuse them a licence even though they are licensed by every other central bank in Europe.
@Tom: The online banks; N26, Revolut, Monzo, Fire (the only Irish online-only bank I know of) etc. are all so much better than any Irish bank, despite the fact they all are start-ups with a fraction of the staff and capital. Decent support too with hours outside of 10am – 4pm.
Only time there is a problem with those is when something comes up that you would typically go to a branch for. Lodging money comes to mind (via branch or ATM).
@Shane Corry: I hadn’t heard of those others. Will give them each a go.
I think it is a bit rich of the central bank to say there is not a customer focus. The Central Bank have refused a licence for Raisin.com to operate in Ireland. Raisin.com is a company that allows people to use banks in other countries throughout Europe for deposts. Hence achieving better rates for customers. Ireland is the only country in the EU that Raisin cannot operate.
What I can never understand is why a hell of a lot more bankers are not in prison. They deliberately stole many peoples money by putting them on the wrong interest rates in the tracker mortgage scandal. This is obvious theft. Why are they allowed get away with this ? The establishment looks after its own
@Michael farrelly: Because you live in a highly corrupt country and its that was because we vote for it every election.
Bank of Ireland have no soul
@Irish Political GIF: In short the Central Bank examined all the major banks to see if they’d changed their greedy, self-centered “to hell with the customer” ways, they’d clearly put considerable time and effort into this.
Their conclusion is to tell us what we already know, that, no, they haven’t changed one iota. And their answer to this is to send the report to the various Banks, as a sort of gentle reminder, and recommend legislation to ” facilitate an individual accountability framework”.
Seriously, ffs, what’s the point? If it’s not bad enough telling that the Central Bank has the bare faced cheek to stand in front of the people of this country at this stage and admit that all the major Banks couldn’t give a rat’s anus about any of their collective customers is that not a slight indication of a problem? Is it not a bigger indication of a problem that, having identified all the Banks giving their so-called regulator a collective finger, their is absolutely nothing that can be done about it except a stern letter. Meanwhile this country and it’s people get collectively screwed – again, by the banks, while yet another government stands by and pretends to be outraged.
Simple bank’s are a law onto themselves, the mortgage scandal proved it big time. The CB says it has teeth but it’s bark is worse than its bite. Don’t let the top banker’s draw the recommendations out just make it law ,sign up or leave your job end off.
If you were to believe all the claptrap that come from the marketing departments of these major companies about mission statements and company ethos etc you’d think they were some kind of benevolent overseers only out to serve the interests of their deer customers. The truth is they are all money grabbing slime bags, whose only priorities are to extract maximum profit with minimum outlay. The Irish banks should hang their collective heads in shame at their behaviour over the past 20 years. As for companies like Apple, for all their talk of loving their users, they are getting more closed and cult-like every day, not afraid to stomp all over statutory rights to protect their profits. Company statements are nonsense and should be completely ignored.
@Emachine: “dear” customers
Banks are a law onto themselves, and screw their customers, they simply see them as cows to milk.
My local Branch constantly harass customers to use machines for transactions, and actually process most transactions for the older customers. Who walk out none the wiser. Counter access now down to 9-12, complete joke.
As for tracker issue, amongst many others…..
Intentionally defrauding customers!
Regulators are incompetent and useless !
@Isthatright: sure my local branch doesn’t accept cash… yeup you read that right. If you can’t do it by machine then youve to go to another branch altogether.
@Karen NíDhochartaigh: Close your account and tell them you are moving to another bank because of it, otherwise no point in complaining.
My Local Ulster bank has implemented a forced use of envelopes paying cheques in. No counter service. Made a complaint to ulsterbank and got 25 euro and an apology but the change in attitude of the counter staff since it was brought in is noticeable.
I suppose they only have to be slightly less obnoxious than bank of Ireland to know I won’t move there and account charges are way higher in aib.
Listening to the radio on my way home from work..the report was being discussed..was amazed to discover that a Belgian customer can shop for a mortgage in most of Europe..with20yr fixed rates of 2% readily available..imagine if were all really equal…
GOUGE the customer fist,board room.
Customer first advertised.
What does anyone expect? Banks defraud their tracker customers at will and there are no consequences. Fine Gael disinterested in white collar crime and the devastating consequences on people’s lives. Fact.
Open a smsrt account at the post office…personal service and open 6 days a week
Bank of Ireland have been torturing us for 8 years
OK here are my terms and conditions:
Any bank that causes a communication signal with nauseating adspeak content to be broadcast into my home shall be liable to a fine of €50,000 for each and every offence.
Peer to Peer lending for mortgages and other small to medium loans please, let’s cut out these banks having so much clout over us.
Government should be legislating for innovation, and not protecting their friends.
Any excuse my diatribe, probably talking rubbish as usual.
@Hellenize Dublin: *Anyway
Banks that have softly spoken american sounding patter, backing brave or some such nonsense. Put more tellers on instead
If you want to change something start with the top! For the banks – the top is the major shareholders. Group together and threaten the major shareholders with a boycott or blockades and they won’t be long pushing for action.
You only have watch that very wrong BOI advert with the boy and his teddy bear to realise that the banks want you to keep moving house and for no other reason other than to keep them in profit!! They don’t care that that boy needs roots to grow, form friends and have stability!!!!!
If possible, nobody wants to move, school going kids from house to house or to completely different neighborhoods, which that advert is suggesting is the normal path of life.
have your say