Professor John McHale:

If new capital had to be raised for a bank such as AIB that is almost 100% State owned, the State would want to raise that as cheaply as possible. So if that capital could be raised more cheaply from the private sector than from the ESM, then it should definitely raise that capital from the private sector. When I say cheaply, it is somewhat like "Dragon's Den" where people must decide how much of their company they are willing to give up in return for these funds. It wants to give up as little of its current stake which is effectively owned by the Government as possible.