“Banif is a shocking subject and has to be explained," commented António Horta Osório, the head of Lloyds Bank.
The Portuguese banker, head of the Lloyds Banking Group, said that an external audit is needed if Banif is having an injection of €3 billion, a value "too high to not have a very clear calculation of liabilities."
“Every Portuguese family is putting more than €1,000 into the bank even after the many sacrifices they have made."
"Among the bank's management, supervisors and shareholders (majority owned by the Portuguese state), you need to determine exactly what happened," said Horta Osorio.
"Given that the damage is done, the Portuguese taxpayers deserve at least know with transparency and rectitude what happened, how that money was used and this should be done as soon as possible."
The unions representing Banif workers are the only group that is happy, apart from Santander which bought the good assets for a song.
Selling Banif to Santander "inspires confidence about the future of the workers," said the Federation of Trade Unions of the Financial Sector, adding that their union is "rejoicing" with the solution as it means saving jobs.
The Finance Minister, Mario Centeno, said today of the Banif rescue, "labour rights will be respected", and "workers' rights pass to Santander Totta.
Former Prime Minister Pedro Passos Coelho today rejected accusations that he had delayed sorting out the bank as there was an election coming up, adding that the Socialist Party knew of the problems at Banif.
Passos Coelho said it was "absurd" to say that the issue was not resolved sooner because his government wanted a clean exit from the Troika support programme and said that the Banif problem “was known to the Socialists and the whole of Portuguese society, there was no secrecy.”
According to Passos Coelho, when he handed over to António Costa, he ensured that the new PM was aware of the state of play at Banif and that the Competition Directorate General had rejected any rescue that involved more public funds being spent.
"And this also was our position, that as much as possible we should avoid spending taxpayers' money to resolve such situations at banks," adding the former PM, displaying his trademark lack of memory and omitting to mention the €13 billion his administration has spend on supporting Portugal’s lame banking sector.
Finance Minister Mario Centeno said today that the current government had achieved in three weeks what was not achieved in three years under Passos Coelho, adding that the solution to banif’s woes was a quick remedy for the difficulties that were handed to him when the current executive took office.
The total bill for taxpayers could be as much as €3.825 billion.
