Ireland could entirely offload its stake in the lender this year after nationalising the bank more than a decade ago.
The Irish government is offering a 5% stake in Allied Irish Banks (AIB), reducing its holding from 17.5% to 12.5%.
In a statement, the finance ministry said on Tuesday it had sold 116 million shares at €5.60 each – raising around €652m.
This latest transaction achieved a price which was 14% higher than that achieved in the previous AIB sale last June.
The total will be placed into the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, awaiting further direction from Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe.
The State’s investment in AIB has so far brought it €17.9 billion.
“We have made significant progress in reducing the State’s shareholding in AIB from c. 71% at the beginning of 2022 to c. 12.5% today,” said Donohoe in Monday’s statement.
“It is now a realistic target that the State could exit its position in AIB later this year should market conditions allow,” he added.
Commenting on the share sale, AIB Group Chief Executive Officer Colin Hunt said: “This well-supported transaction is another important milestone in the process of returning the State’s investment in the Group and a normalisation of the share register.”
“It will return a further c. €652 million to Irish taxpayers to whom AIB is deeply grateful, for their support during the financial crisis.”
Along with other Irish banks, AIB was bailed out by the state following the 2008 crash, emerging as a warning sign against reckless lending.
As the bank’s finances have improved, the state has slowly been reducing its stake, launching an IPO for a portion of its shares in 2017.
The €29bn rescue still remains present in the minds of policymakers as they seek to learn from the complacency of the Celtic Tiger boom era.
Dublin has notably been storing away income into sovereign wealth funds, boosted by multinational tax revenue.
Some experts nonetheless argue that more money must be allocated to these pots – particularly in light of uncertainty surrounding the Trump presidency.
AIB will deliver new 2024 financial results on 5 March.
