Cantillon: Happy with B of I, Ross sets sights on Greece

It is safe to presume that the excitement surrounding Bank of Ireland’s trip beyond the 20-cent frontier this week was not particularly contagious beyond its post-crash investors.

The thousands who owned shares when the bank was in the double-digit-euro range may, in fact, have preferred to look away as it ticked up to its highest level since May 2011 – their pain must still be raw.

Somebody who may have permitted themselves a small grin is Wilbur Ross (above), the grand-uncle of the next generation of Irish banking.

Ross (75) bought into Bank of Ireland just over two years ago, paying eight to 10 cents a share for his 9.9 per cent stake. That amounted to about €300 million, meaning he is now sitting on a paper profit of roughly the same amount. No wonder he was so keen, in an interview earlier this year, to describe the bank as his best investment of the financial crisis.

It is a classic case of risk and reward, with Ross buying in at what seems to have been a good time and now facing a potentially equally difficult decision on the right timing for an exit.

Last week’s results suggesting the bank’s return to profit are raising flags on many dealing desks, as illustrated by the 20-cent barrier being breached.

For the moment, it seems Uncle Wilbur's eyes and pockets have been lured elsewhere in Europe, with reports in June suggesting he is ready to invest in Spain.

This week, his sights seem to be extending east, as far as euro zone bad boy Greece. Antonis Samsaras, Greece's prime minister, was on a three-day trip to the US which involved, among other things, a meeting with 20 top Wall Street finance types.

The group, which discussed Greek investment opportunities, included hedge fund manager John Paulson and representatives from Blackstone and Carlyle. It also included our dear old Uncle Wilbur – and we thought we were the special ones.