Cologne Re, the Dublin based reinsurer at the centre of a malpractice investigation is in the process of winding up its operations here in Ireland.
Its former chief executive, John Houldsworth, is accused of arranging fraudulent contracts to boost the profits of one of its clients, the giant insurance company AIG.
Houldsworth is awaiting sentence in America on conspiracy charges.
Financial regulators in America, Australia, Germany and the UK investigated and took action against those involved in the fraud. Incredibly, despite Dublin being the centre of the conspiracy, the Irish Financial Regulator took no action whatsoever.
For those of us familiar with how things are done in Ireland this comes as no surprise.
However, much of the global financial community is now beginning to see Ireland as a rogue market or as the New York Times put it, “The wild west of European finance.”
In a pathetic attempt to explain its failure to act the Financial Regulator CEO, Pat Neary, said there was
“no evidence other than what was in the head of John Houldsworth.
Now that’s bizarre.