DUBLIN--Ireland's Dolmen Stockbrokers, the country's fourth
largest surviving broker, Monday said that it had been acquired by
Cantor Fitzgerald of the U.S., as the firm strengthens its focus on
Irish government debt and other distressed local corporate
debt.
Cantor will apply to join a roster of so-called primary dealers
that help Ireland's debt office sell Irish government debt around
the world and invest in its other Irish operations, said Dolmen
chief executive Ronan Reid, who helped set up Dolmen in 1995.
The acquisition marks another shakeup for Irish stock market
brokers whose profits have plunged since the onset of the country's
deep banking debt crisis more than four years ago.
NCB Stockbrokers--the country's second largest broker--was
bought by Investec PLC of South Africa earlier this year, while
Bloxham Stockbrokers was forced into liquidation in May, after the
Irish central bank discovered it had overstated its capital
reserves. Many of Bloxham's clients transferred to Davy
Stockbrokers, Ireland's largest broker, and to Goodbody
Stockbrokers, the country's second largest broker.
Irish stock market brokers generated huge profits in their
private-client operations during the last of the country's boom
years. Amid a huge property market collapse, Ireland was plunged
into crisis when the costs of saving its banks escalated from 2008.
Forced to strike a bailout deal with the European Union and
International Monetary Fund in late 2010, the country hopes to
regain full access by selling Irish debt to markets by the time the
bailout loans expire at the end of 2013.
Write to Eamon Quinn at eamon.quinn@dowjones.com
