GWYNEDD Council could get the whole of the £4 million deposited with an Icelandic bank back with an almost certain guarantee that 85 per cent or £3.4 million at least will be returned.
A total of £4 million was deposited in the Heritable Bank, which was registered in the UK, but encountered difficulties because it was a subsidiary of the Landsbanki of Iceland.
Head of finance Dafydd Edwards told Gwynedd councillors at the Meirionnydd area committee in Dolgellau that winding-up procedures are going ahead with the administrators seeking to maximise returns to creditors over the long term and by 2012/13.
To date 41 per cent has been paid to creditors, including Gwynedd Council, in the four instalments, with the latest being on July 14 this year.
“On each occasion, the dividend payments were slightly higher than the administrators had originally predicted,” said Mr Edwards.
“It is unlikely that the exact final return will be clear until 2012/13 and the value will depend upon the performance of the assets held by Heritable, which includes equity and property in the UK.
“On the basis of evidence currently to hand, it is reasonable to conclude that we should receive returns of 85 per cent or more.
“If so, Gwynedd Council would be likely to recover £3.4 million or more of the original deposit of £4 million. If there is a double dip in the economy, then less could be recovered, but if there is a further improvement in Britain’s economy, it would not be impossible for us to recover the whole £4 million,” he said.
When asked if the council would ‘lose’ interest on the £4 million Mr Edwards said that with interest being so low at present, he expected a “decent return” in due course.
As part of the departments saving schemes in line with other cuts Mr Edwards said that rationalising and restructuring of the cash collection service, local taxation and benefits units, insurance and fraud prevention units and management units together with payroll procedures were on-going.
He also hoped to generate additional income from passports, courts, and administration fees.