Sir, – Fintan O’Toole’s article (Opinion, January 17th) is a biased, highly negative misrepresentation of the role of the International Financial Services Centre (IFSC), which ignores the extraordinary achievements of the IFSC for Ireland’s economy.
The success of companies operating under the aegis of the IFSC is remarkable, given the instability in the financial markets over the past few years.
This success is one that Ireland should be proud of. It is a success born of the hard work of many Irish people in providing solutions and products for their clients in the financial services industry.
O’Toole is wrong to suggest that “light touch” regulation is a reason for many companies choosing to operate in the IFSC. As part of EU law, Ireland has implemented the Undertakings for Collective Investment of Transferable Securities (UCITS) directives into Irish law.
This continuity of regulation standards across domiciles in Europe is one of the main reasons for the continuing growth in assets under administration in Ireland. At the end of 2011 assets under administration reached €1 trillion in value, up 40 per cent since the end of 2009. – Yours, etc,