Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Rather than the structure Permanent TSB entered into, which involved handing over legal title of properties and having a different servicing agent to deal with them, why did the bank not look at a securitisation arrangement that would retain legal title but had another servicing agent? That would have made more sense if the advice the bank received was to the effect that it should have an external servicing agent to service those loans. Why was that not looked at as a possibility? It would have meant, in effect, that the bank would not have sold the loans to the vultures. The issue seems to be only to reduce non-performing loans. Permanent TSB is saying that the only reason it could not do what Bank of Ireland has done, which involves retaining legal title, is that the bank would need to have another servicing agent over the medium to long term. If so, then why did Permanent TSB not look at retaining legal title, not selling to a vulture and have an external servicing provider to service the mortgages? Why was that not possible?