CHURCH OF IRELAND’S BIG LOSS IN AIB SHARES WIPE OUT

The BBC has reported that the value of the Church of Ireland's shareholding in Allied Irish Bank has plummeted by more than 17m euros (£14.7m) following the collapse of the institution's share prices. The Irish Independent carries a full report naming several Church of ireland parishes which have been hard hit through individual investments also. Links to both reports are  givenbelow.

The BBC report states: The Church has seen its stake in AIB dwindle from a high of 17.3m euros to just 262,500 euros (£228,000) because of the shares wipeout.

At the height of the boom four years ago, shares were priced at 23 euros (£20) each. On Thursday night prices dropped to a new low of just 34c (29p) each.

The Church of Ireland is one of the biggest individual shareholders in the AIB with 750,000 shares.

'

Not immune'

The Representative Church Body (RCB) manages the Church's shares.

A spokesperson for the RCB said: "The Church of Ireland is not immune from the very difficult financial environment here in Ireland and worldwide, the impacts of which are creating major problems for many people, organisations, and governments.

"In common with the experience of others, invested assets held for the Church by the RCB have lost a substantial amount of value in the past few years.

"These investments are in general held for the long term, and it is expected that, over time, the value of investments should recover."

Shares in AIB sank to their lowest level since April on Thursday as news of a new executive chairman failed to re-assure the markets.

And prices are likely to fall even further when the Irish government increases its stake in the bank to 90% in December as part of a 3.7bn euros cash injection by the state.

The Church of Ireland said it will now have to adjust its spending in the wake of the loss of income from share dividends.

The Irish Independent’s report states that:

POLITICIANS, businessmen, churches and charities have lost millions in the collapse of AIB shares, a special investigation by the Irish Independent reveals.

The Church of Ireland is nursing one of the biggest losses after its €17.3m investment plummeted to just over €260,000 in the shares wipeout.

Other high-profile figures and organisations who were badly burned include Health Minister Mary Harney and her husband Brian Geoghegan; Fine Gael frontbencher Richard Bruton; Dunnes Stores chief Margaret Heffernan and her brother Frank Dunne; Fianna Fail TD Sean Haughey; and publican Charlie Chawke.

Shares in AIB sank to their lowest level since April last night as news of a new executive chairman failed to ignite a revival.

The almost-nationalised bank spent much of the day trading at 34c, a level not seen for more than six months.

And the bank's shares are likely to fall even further once the Government raises its stake to 90pc in December as part of another €3.7bn cash injection to shore up the bank.

For complete reports:

BBC report:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-11652923

Irish Independent report:

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/revealed-the-losers-in-aib-share-wipeout-2399450.html