PERMANENT TSB (PTSB) has launched a formal sale process in search of a new long-term owner.
This could potentially mark the end of the state’s remaining ownership in Ireland’s banking system.
The bank confirmed that its day-to-day operations, services and customer support will remain unaffected during the process.
Chair Julie O’Neill said the decision reflects growing investor appetite and strong market conditions, noting that a new owner could “unlock PTSB’s potential for further growth and scale.”
If successful, the sale would see the State divest its 57.5% stake in PTSB: the last major shareholding it retains following the financial crisis.
Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe voiced support for the plan, describing it as a step toward returning capital to taxpayers and repurposing funds once used to rescue Irish banks.
“A sale of the State’s investment would be consistent with the objective of recovering taxpayer funds and deploying these to more productive purposes,” Donohoe said, according to RTÉ.
Goldman Sachs has been appointed as financial adviser to oversee the sale process.
PTSB stated that the move follows “unprecedented demand” for its recent Green Tier 2 bond issuance and a surge in international investor interest in Irish financial institutions.
The announcement coincided with PTSB’s third-quarter trading update, which showed a 4% decline in total operating income compared with the same period last year.
But key segments of the business continue to expand: deposits are up 7%, the mortgage book has grown 4%, and business lending has increased 11%.
Chief Executive Eamonn Crowley highlighted strong mortgage performance, reporting €2.1 billion in new mortgage lending so far this year, up 64% year-on-year.
He added that operating expenses remain on track to fall to €525 million by year-end, while the bank’s capital position is robust with a Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio of 15.5%.
PTSB is currently Ireland’s third-largest bank and has undergone a major shift in recent years as the domestic banking market consolidated following the exits of Ulster Bank and KBC.
A successful sale would complete the government’s withdrawal from the banking sector, following its exits from Bank of Ireland in 2022 and AIB earlier this year.
Shares in PTSB rose in early Dublin trading following the announcement.
