Ex-Anglo chief's home on market
Drumm sale follows $7m purchase of luxury houses in top US resort
THE FORMER chief executive of Anglo Irish Bank, David Drumm, has put his palatial home in Malahide on the market for €2.79m, just eight months after standing down from his position at the troubled institution.
Mr Drumm's decision to offload the sprawling 5,400 square foot property in the Abington development comes less than a month after the Government received approval from the EU to pump €4bn of taxpayers' money into the now-nationalised bank to recapitalise it.
It also comes on the back of Mr Drumm's $7.2m purchase of two luxurious houses in the exclusive US resort of Cape Cod last year. As previously revealed by the Sunday Independent, Mr Drumm splashed out on one of those properties just as Anglo Irish Bank was being bailed out by the State under the terms of Finance Minister Brian Lenihan's €400bn Deposit Guarantee Scheme.
One year on and with the Irish property market in the doldrums, Mr Drumm could face a far greater challenge in trying to offload his Malahide home. However, with its relatively competitive €2.79m asking price and high specification, the former Anglo chief could yet find a willing buyer.
According to the marketing literature posted by Mr Drumm's selling agents, the six-bedroom, five-bathroom detached house is sited behind electronic gates on 0.3 acres of manicured lawns.
Inside, "no expense has been spared" the agent declares, adding how "this is evident in the exceptional finishes and fine features in the residence".
Hardwood Meribeau flooring, 'Sanitan' bathroom fittings, underfloor heating and a central vacuum system along with the must have island kitchen counter which was so beloved of the Celtic Tiger years are all present, and could be just enough to entice those thinking of dipping their toe in the choppy waters of the Irish property market.
While Mr Drumm was unavailable for comment at his Malahide home yesterday, his decision to sell his Dublin residence -- which is situated next to Westlife star Nicky Byrne's home -- is understood to be part of a longer term career strategy in which the former Anglo boss would relocate to the United States.
Should he decide to settle in either of his Cape Cod homes, which cost $4.6m (€2.8m) and $2.6m (€1.4m) respectively, he can look forward to living very comfortably indeed.
The more expensive and luxurious of the two properties is located at the picturesque Stage Neck area, and overlooks the exclusive holiday retreat of Nantucket Sound and the Oyster River, while the other residence is located away from the shore at Cross Street, the main thoroughfare in the nearby and idyllic resort town of Chatham.
Either property would provide the perfect retreat for the Dublin-born banker should he find a suitable position in the United States in which he could apply his talents and wealth of experience.
Not that Mr Drumm will need to find a job to match the previous dizzying heights he reached in Ireland. For even as he waits to reach retirement age in 2031, he can look forward to an annual pension that will be worth €271,000 in today's terms, courtesy of his time as a director and chief executive at Anglo Irish Bank.
To make matters even more unpalatable for the taxpayer, Mr Drumm could yet be entitled to compensation for losing his job at Anglo despite ongoing questions in relation to his stewartship. Indeed, in a statement last January, Finance Minister Brian Lenihan acknowledged that Anglo directors who lost their positions would 'retain their right to pursue compensation for loss of office'. He added that while it would be wrong to prevent such claims, they 'will be defended as appropriate'.
Drumm and Anglo's former finance director, Willie McAteer, have outstanding deferred bonus payments awarded in 2006, which were due for repayment in December 2008. Anglo's new board has been taking legal advice about whether the money should be paid.
- RONALD QUINLAN
