The EUR to GBP Exchange Rate was in the region of 0.8633 as of 12:00 GMT
The Irish might have trounced Wales in their first fixture of the Six Nations but the luck of the Irish wasn’t with the country this morning.
Yesterday Ireland presented the European Central Bank with a proposal regarding restructuring the costing of former Anglo Irish Bank Corp’s bailout.
However, rather than reaching a decision and putting an end to an issue which has been dragged out since the lender’s troubles began four years ago the ECB has delayed making a decision.
As resolution is unlikely during today’s ECB meeting the decision could be days, or even weeks away.
Although junior Irish Finance Minister Brian Hayes is sure that an accord will be reached other industry experts are urging caution.
One economist with KBC Bank Ireland Plc asserted: ‘While the Irish government is in a very tricky situation, the ECB is too and anything that looks questionable on their part would have ramifications far beyond the immediate Irish debt issue. All the parties to this particular deal have a great deal to lose by getting it wrong.’
Indeed some are concerned that if this proposal is approved it could set a potentially dangerous precedent in the Eurozone, especially in light of banking crises in nations like Spain.
Back in 2009 Anglo Irish was nationalised. Within a year it was issued with 30 billion Euros worth of promissory notes, which the Irish central bank is responsible for whilst funding Anglo Irish through emergency lending. The current payment structure means that the government will be presenting Anglo Irish with 3.1 billion Euros per year for ten years in order to pay down the central bank loan.
If Ireland was instead able to shut the bank and substitute the promissory note with a long-term bond those payments could be avoided and Ireland’s financing needs would be lowered.
Even though such an action wouldn’t have much of an impact on Ireland’s overall debt levels this proposal does play an important part in Ireland’s ability to exit its international bailout.
EUR Exchange Rates
As of 12:00 pm
The Euro to Pound Sterling exchange rate is currently trading in the region of 0.8633
The Euro to US Dollar exchange rate is currently trading in the region of 1.3570
The Euro to Australian Dollar exchange rate is currently trading in the region of 1.3136
The Euro to New Zealand Dollar exchange rate is currently trading in the region of 1.6209
The Euro to Canadian Dollar exchange rate is currently trading in the region of 1.3488
The Euro to Emirati Dirham exchange rate is currently trading in the region of 4.9840
The Euro to Swiss Franc is currently trading in the region of 1.2319
The Euro to Japanese Yen exchange rate is currently trading in the region of 127.3310