AIB appoints receivers to assets owned by O’Reilly

AIB has appointed Luke Charleton and Marcus Purcell of accounting group EY as receivers to assets owned by Sir Anthony O’Reilly.

The EY partners were appointed by the bank to Brookside Investments last Friday, according to documents filed with the Companies Office. That was the day AIB secured €45 million of judgments against Sir Anthony and his companies.

State-owned AIB initiated court proceedings in May seeking summary judgment for €22 million against Sir Anthony, and for €18.6 million and €4.1 million respectively against two of his investment vehicles – Cyprus-based Indexia Holdings and Brookside Investments Ltd – after expressing dissatisfaction with proposals from the businessman to clear his debts.

Brookside owns Sir Anthony’s estate in Glandore, Co Cork, while Indexia holds his near 5 per cent stake in Independent News & Media and shares in Providence Resources.

Glandore sale

Mr Justice Peter Kelly’s judgment against Sir Anthony last Friday noted that the sale of Shorecliffe House in Glandore had been agreed for €1.75 million. Brookside’s registered address is the Castlemartin Stud Farm in Kilcullen, Co Kildare, which is owned by Sir Anthony.

The High Court was told last week that Castlemartin was the “jewel in the crown” among Sir Anthony’s assets and the key to his ability to pay off his debt to AIB. The bank was secured in respect of 237.48 acres of the 750-acre estate in Kildare.

Sir Anthony had sought a six-month stay of registration and execution to allow for the orderly completion of a sale of his unsecured assets, including Castlemartin. Mr Justice Kelly ruled against the stay last Friday.

Brookside’s shareholders are listed as Columbia Investments, which holds 99 per cent of the shares, and Pauline O’Donovan, a director of the company based in Dublin, with 1 per cent. Columbia itself is registered at Castlemartin and is owned by Indexia, another of Sir Anthony’s investment vehicles.

Quick move

AIB’s decision to move so quickly after Mr Justice Kelly’s judgement last Friday was probably designed to secure the funds from any asset sales.

A standstill agreement by creditors not to appoint receivers expired in December 2013 and AIB could have moved to do this at any point in the subsequent six months.

In his judgement last week, Justice Kelly noted AIB was entitled, if it wished, to proceed to enforce against the secured assets of Sir Anthony by appointing receivers. He added: “The plaintiff [AIB] has not done so to date. Indeed, it appears that it does not intend to do so at present.”

AIB’s decision to appoint the EY partners last Friday indicate that it had a change of heart in the aftermath of Mr Justice Kelly’s ruling.

The court heard last week that Sir Anthony owed €195 million in total to eight banks and one fund. His debt to AIB represented 11.6 per cent of his overall personal liabilities to creditors, and the bank said it believed his overall debts were greater than his remaining assets.

The one-time multi-millionaire was described by AIB as being insolvent.

Sir Anthony has been busily selling assets recently. His Dublin house at Fitzwilliam Square was sold for €3.2 million. The house was secured to ACC Bank.

No comment was available from either AIB or the receivers yesterday, or from Sir Anthony.