IBRC liquidators investigate leaking of Anglo tapes

The special liquidators of Irish Bank Resolution Corporation have appointed accountants Deloitte and law firm McCann Fitzgerald to investigate the leaking of taped conversations from Anglo Irish Bank dating from the time of its collapse in late 2008.

It is understood that Deloitte will focus on investigating the source of the potential leak while McCann Fitzgerald will advise on any legal issues arising from this case.

The tapes were leaked to Independent newspapers and journalist Paul Williams, with a series of articles run across the media company's various titles.

The liquidators – Kieran Wallace and Eamonn Richardson of KPMG – wrote to various parties involved in this matter about 10 days ago after the leaks had emerged in the media.

It has followed this up with the appointment of Deloitte and McCann Fitzgerald to investigate the leaks.

Interviews
It is not clear if Deloitte will seek to interview either Mr Williams or other parties at the Independent newspaper group about the source of the tapes.

At the Financial Services Ireland annual lunch in Dublin yesterday, the Minister for Finance Michael Noonan told journalists that the Anglo tapes were received by An Garda Síochána in 2010.

“I don’t know of anybody else who has the tapes,” the Minister added in response to a question about whether he was aware if any civil litigants involved in legal actions with Anglo or IBRC might have had the tapes.

In light of the leaks, Mr Noonan said he felt it “prudent” to write to the chairmen of the other Irish banks to request that they keep any tapes or documents from the period of the financial crisis that might be relevant for the upcoming banking inquiry.