Full coverage: AIB

Silicon Valley Bank's collapse has been noted by Irish bank shareholders. But that doesn't mean the banks are at risk.

Retail investors dissatisfied with the redress scheme established by the bank to compensate some investors in the Belfry property funds have formed a new action group, opening a fresh front in an eight-year-old battle.

At long last, AIB has begun paying investors in the failed Belfry Funds, and some are even getting damages. It has been a long time coming for investors who have battled the bank for decades.

In the last two years, AIB has more than doubled and Bank of Ireland has more than tripled in value. First-half results now available for both institutions tell the story.

The decision to cut costs by removing cash services from 70 AIB branches was the logical decision for a normal publicly-listed company. But the majority state-owned bank isn't one.

The tracker scandal was not an outlier for AIB. As the sad tale of the Belfry Funds shows, the bank has repeatedly put its own interests above those of its customers.

Some 2,500 investors in the bank's failed scheme were previously told to expect compensation assessments by now, but AIB has just asked them to wait another five months.

Tech entrepreneur Barry Napier had a side business in pubs and restaurants. When that failed, his bankers went after his most precious asset – his shares in Cubic Telecom.

AIB has set aside €100 million to deal with thousands of legacy investors in the disastrous Belfry funds. This is what is next if you are one of 2,230 people not yet settled with.

He did not know it at the time, but missing out on the top job at AIB in 2005 was a blessing. Since then, Gary Kennedy has become a boardroom titan, chairing companies such as Greencore and Green Reit. Now, he is pursuing his most difficult job yet: getting more companies to appoint women directors.