Top Irish Securities Firm Starts Review After Fine, Reprimand

(Bloomberg) -- Ireland's biggest securities firm Davy said it would review a central bank investigation into a scandal which encompassed some of its top executives.

The regulator on Tuesday accused the firm of a “lack of candour” and said it provided “misleading details” during a probe into a deal involving 16 staff, including senior managers, at the broker. Davy was fined 4.13 million euros ($5 million) for breaches.

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Davy said it has “commenced a detailed review of the findings so as to ensure that lessons are learnt and appropriate actions are taken.”

The case centers on a deal which saw a consortium of employees buy bonds from a client in a personal capacity, the central bank said, without the customer knowing they were the buyers. The firm said it's satisfied that the issues couldn't recur.

The National Treasury Management Agency said Wednesday it's monitoring the situation at Davy, as “it notes the very serious findings by the central bank,” while Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe urged the firm to make a public statement.

Davy was joint bookrunner on a syndicated sale of 5.5 billion euros ($6.6 billion) worth state debt in January and of 6 billion euros in June. It also acted as a global co-ordinator on the government sale of part of its holding in AIB Group Plc in 2017, which raised about 3.4 billion euros.

Davy said it deeply regrets “shortcomings that emerged from the investigation and apologises unreservedly and unequivocally.”

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