BANKING ON TOM CHAPTER 6

 BANKING ON TOM CHAPTER 6

 

THE PLAN TAKES SHAPE TUESDAY

 

Tom had taken the early flight to Heathrow. He sat in the back of the black S Class Mercedes as it purred along the M4 into London. In the centre console there were chilled bottles of Perrier mineral water and in the side pockets the day’s newspapers including the Financial Times and the ubiquitous Daily Mail. He could make out through the tinted windows the familiar sights of office blocks as he approached the City. Traveling through Hammersmith they arrived to the fashionable Cavendish Square where Arturo had his offices.

 

After some small talk the men got down to business. Tom had faxed Arturo an outline of his trading plan. There were two areas where the Fernandez family could help and make a lot of money. They might consider investing equity into the scheme that would extend the Banks ability to maximise profits. They might also find an insurance company to underwrite the risk. They would be paid a handsome fee for this service too. Tom was not at all surprised when Arturo chose to invest £10m of the family’s money in the project. They might expect a return of £20/30m if things went well. What he was not expecting the identity of the insurance underwriter.

 

There was a polite knock on the door and in came a distinguished looking cleric. Arturo introduced the priest ‘This is father Salvatore Romano P.P.; he is a friend of the family. He is a member of the secretive religious Order called Pro Pontifice, P.P. for short. It comprises about fifty priests, no one is sure, mostly from Sicily who have devoted their lives to supporting the Popes in ways the Popes themselves are not expected to know or understand. The good Lord suggested we be as simple as doves and as wise as serpents. Well, Fr. Salvatore is committed to protecting the Papacy from the serpents. They are the Pope’s special forces as it were. All of their actions are deniable. In fact most members don’t know the identity or actions of most of the other members, only their Superior and the rest on a need-to-know basis. Discretion is their middle name. One of their strategies is to make men that cannot betrayed and therefore can be used for purposes that can't one traced. The Curia will be aware of PP but not of its activities. Its cover is escorting wealthy Catholic benefactors to all the Holy places be it Rome, Jerusalem or other sites of devotion.’

 

Tom was impressed by the firm handshake of the young priest. Fr. Salvatore was dressed in a simple black clerical suit that had been impeccably tailored. His shoes shone and his black hair was brushed back.  All he needed was a moustache and he could have passed as Errol Flynn. Tom could imagine the bevy of swooning faithful at his Masses, that is if he even had a congregation. Tom suspected that this special ops maestro was unlikely to hang out in normal Parish churches. Salvatore had perfect English with a slight American accent. From watching American gangster films, thought Tom.

 

Tom didn’t need to repeat the plan to Salvatore. Arturo had shared it with him and he had been busy. Salvatore explained that Banco di Positano would underwrite the risk through an insurance subsidiary. It would have to interpose a local Sicilian Insurance Company to give cover. This plan would not pose a problem however as Salvatore was on excellent terms with the Italian Central Bank from previous satisfactory investments. The Sicilian Insurance company would be delighted to help, for a fee. Salvatore had excellent connections in Banco di Positano at the highest level.

 

Tom was vaguely aware of a vast web of Banks and Savings Institutions through Italy some dating back centuries. Unlike the Banking scene in Ireland and the UK where Banks had been ruthlessly culled and merged. In Italy there was a vast choice still available. Every region was proud and fought for its own Bank and Savings House. The Americans had merged many of their banks, leaving only a few to dominate the economy. The policy was to leave only a few banks ‘too big too fail’. It never occurred to the central bankers that this concentration in fact increased risk and reduced choice. Tom was just happy that Italy could come up trumps when needed.

 

 

Even though the general position was agreed, Tom felt it best to run over the details, ‘si por acaso’ – just in case. The project foresaw an underwriting requirement of about £250,000,000 – the trading range of a typical big investment bank. Tom assumed the Italian insurance company would in turn reinsure, or lay off much of the risk to other insurance companies and so on, with no single company underwriting more than £10,000,000. Enough to damage the results of a bank or insurance company but not to sink it. IBB itself would retain £10m of risk which it would share with BBB. IBB should clear about £15m profit which it would share with BBB. IBB would either be transformed or go bust, much as London had been encouraging.

 

Tom was totally upfront with Arturo. He explained the identity of the Singaporean entity - Marston Partners - which would net about £1.5m n'arrangement' fees – it was a shell company owned equally by Tom, Maura and Steph. If Arturo was surprised, he didn’t show it. Perhaps he assumed such arrangements were typical. This is exactly what they did in New York but with more visibility. In the US the robbery was in plain sight and no one seemed to care as long as it was declared and rarely taxed.

 

Salvatore seemed to show no obvious discomfort either. Tom wasn’t too sure what to make of Salvatore. He wore a simple Swatch watch which Tom took as a good sign. However there was something slightly unsettling about this urbane cleric. The pale blue eyes smiled but were impenetrable, Rather than windows to the soul they seemed window shutters. Arturo trusted him, so that was good enough for Tom. The deal would take place the following Friday, February 28^th. Tom would need evidence that the risk was underwritten.

 

‘Not a problem Tom’ affirmed Salvatore. ‘You will have the confirmation fax on your desk before you have returned to your office. He then excused himself explaining that he had to take a flight to Rome from a private airfield on the outskirts of London. Tom tried not to show surprise. Salvatore guessed Tom’s surprise ‘The Lord works in mysterious ways Tom.’ 

‘He sure does’ thought Tom.

 

Tom was delighted that Arturo found the time to ride back in the limousine to Heathrow. Tom had to catch a modest Aer Lingus plane from a public airport. Tom explained his misgivings about the London Office and the direction it was taking. He shared with Arturo that IBB was either being sold or liquidated. He gave Arturo comfort that the family deposits would be safe and both the Bank of England and the Central Bank of Ireland would ensure an orderly transition. Tom was likely to retire from banking entirely and probably live abroad as his family were happy to live independently of him as long as he sent a monthly cheque. Tom felt he would settle a large sum on Janet that would allow her rear the girls until past third level education. Janet would have a mortgage free respectable if slightly down at heel property in fashionable Sandycove. 

 

Arturo offered Tom a job  to run the London family office on twice his current salary. Tom appreciated the kind offer but said he would wait for the dust to settle before making any decision. For all he knew he could end up in trouble in a number of jurisdictions, albeit unlikely. At this stage in his life and his career, he was prepared to risk everything. Twenty years of living carefully had borne little fruit.

 

On arriving at Heathrow Tom walked to the very end of the terminal building where the British had exiled the Irish departure gates. Despite being the busiest international route in the world. After a twenty-five-minute slog he arrived at the gate which featured a tiny bar in deference to Irish drinking habits. He ordered a double Gordon’s gin and tonic. He felt he deserved them. Beside the day was but young. He would return to the office to brief Sebastian Shackleton and Jim O’Sullivan and senior staff over a working late-night buffet.

 

Maura decided to invite her best friend Anne-Marie Adams to a liquid lunch. It was to Anne-Marie she turned in times of crisis. Anne-Marie was a psychiatrist with a very successful practice around the corner in Fitzwilliam Square. People initially assumed that she got where she did by inheriting her father’s thriving practice when he died in his early fifties from a sudden heart attack. Anne Marie had just qualified three years previously. But as one wag put it ’Anne Marie actually cured people’ which many cynics thought unusual for a psychiatrist. Being her own boss she could move appointments with a click of her fingers. Her secretary would simply ring patients with an apology, explaining that Dr. Adams was called to an emergency in one of Dublin’s mental hospitals. Her apologies were invariably accepted on face value with a shrug from her patients.

 

Close as they were, friends from kindergarten, Maura had never discussed Anne-Marie’s sexual orientation with her or anyone else. They had a full and meaningful friendship that did not need to explore that area. They were good for each other. And useful too. Maura had been able to give Anne-Marie a steer on financial matters and insisted over a decade ago that she buy the office suite in Fitzwilliam Square where she had been renting when it came up for sale. It had not only saved Anne-Marie a packet in rent but had appreciated greatly, trebling in value. Anne-Marie, for her part, was able to give Maura solid advice when it came to family matters and issues of the heart. She was invariably correct in her judgement of the various men who featured in Maura’s life. Not that Maura always followed her friend's good advice. Now she needed Anne-Marie’s advice regarding Kevin and the challenges in the office without going into specifics. Anne-Marie’s assessment of Kevin was that he should be allowed one mistake and failing conversion should be banished. She thought it likely that this was Kevin’s final salvo, as if to prove to himself he could still attract younger women. He should soon realize that his attraction to the fairer sex was based almost entirely on his ability to help up them up the greasy ladder. Once he had served his purpose he would be unceremoniously dumped by the younger woman. It was ever such. As for the project promoted by Tom, she felt that in an uncertain world Maura should grasp the opportunity. There was no loyalty on the part of the Bank, so why should she feel guilty? 

 

Maura felt happy with the advice as it chimed with her own feelings. It wasn’t always so. In the past Anne-Marie had recommended she settle for the dull dependable types.  Invariably Maura was attracted to the bold boys like a moth to a naked flame. Anne-Marie was no huge fan of Kevin’s. The feeling of mistrust was mutual. Kevin resented the friendship which predated his arrival on the scene and no doubt would outlast it too. But over time Anne-Marie accepted that on balance Kevin was what she needed if she could keep him on the straight and narrow. On reflection  he was probably worth the investment. He was a gambler who had gambled all his chips and was on the brink of retiring from the casino for good.

 

Maura was no fool either. She reflected the plan proposed by Tom could end in failure. If so, she would never work again in Dublin. Dublin after all was a small pond. Like many others who had failed in Dublin she would try her hand in London. The world was a big place.

 

Maura and Anne-Marie did not finish the second bottle of Châteaux Grand Regnard. Maura picked up the bill. Anne-Marie showed surprise. Normally Maura would produce the company credit card and put it down to ‘marketing’ which would not be challenged. Indeed many of her bosses had expected her to spend up to her limit, but not above. It served to protect the division’s expenses budged and suggested she was out marketing constantly. 

 

They then poured themselves into a taxi. Maura insisted on dropping Anne-Marie home. She directed the taximan to wait outside her house where she filled two cases with Kevin’s clothes and brought them to his office. She was not letting Kevin away with this misdemeanour. The receptionist accepted the luggage without knowing what to say or do.