DUBLIN (Reuters) - Ireland has no plans to sell any portion of 99-percent-state-owned Allied Irish Banks (I:ALBK) (AIB) this year, finance minister Michael Noonan said on Thursday.
AIB's rescue cost taxpayers over 20 billion euros ($25.3 billion), the most given to any Irish bank still trading, and Noonan reiterated that he may test the market next year and was confident the bank was gaining value after returning to profit.
"I have no plans to divest any portion of AIB in 2014 and no decisions have been made for divesting subsequent to that. We will want to have a full account of the stress tests before we begin to form policy on the future of AIB," Noonan told parliament.
(Reporting by Padraic Halpin; editing by Jason Neely)