DISSIDENT SHAREHOLDERS in Irish Life & Permanent (IL&P) said yesterday they had requested that an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) be held in a bid to change the company’s recapitalisation plans.

The bancassurer is selling its life insurance arm, with an embedded value of about €1.6 billion, to help plug a €4 billion capital shortfall and has been considering a share flotation or a trade sale.

The shareholder group, led by Malta-based investment firm Scotchstone Capital, said it accepted that the sale of the business was likely but wanted ILP to first conduct a search for private investors.

The group claims to represent over 14 per cent of the bancassurer’s share capital, more than double the 5 per cent required to call an EGM.

A spokesman for IL&P said that he had not been advised that the group had demonstrated it represented enough shares to enable it to request the meeting.

“Were they to demonstrate this, the board will consider the matter and would have 21 days to call an EGM,” he said.

The High Court granted the Government an order this month directing IL&P to make preparations to ensure its life insurance arm is offered for sale, either via an initial public share offering (IPO) or a trade sale, by the end of October.

The rebel shareholders put forward five resolutions for their proposed EGM, including putting any sale or IPO of the life business on hold and appointing an investment bank to conduct a review of recapitalisation options.

Irish Life’s chairman Alan Cook told shareholders last month that the company would have to rely on State capital support of over €2.5 billion even with the sale of Irish Life, meaning that its banking arm would effectively be nationalised. – (Reuters)