State banks parade their wares

State banks laid their performances on the table this week for all to see as they manoeuvre for advantage in the great game of merger and strategic alliance.

TSB Bank got in ahead of its British namesake, Lloyds TSB - no relation - to trumpet its 15 per cent rise in pre-tax profits to £25.5 million (€32.4 million). With profits and total loans rising the bank is in good shape for any adventures that come its way - almost certainly a merger with State rival ACCBank.

Not surprisingly, TSB top officers were not hiding their charge's light under a bushel. Chairman, Dr Dermot Whelan, described the figures as "impressive" while chief executive, Mr Harry Lorton hailed 1998 as "an excellent year" for the bank.

Over at ICC, in what is expected to be its last year as a State bank, annual figures were the strongest on record with growth of 31 per cent in pre-tax profits to £21.1 million (€26.79 million) in the year to the end of October 1998.

Chairman, Mr Phil Flynn, was quick to point to staff excellence, a strong focus on customer requirements and the buoyant economic conditions for the bank's best year since it was founded in 1933.