AIB said the decision had been taken as part of the review of control processes prompted by the Allfirst affair. In a statement the Bank said the decision was made by the Board "in the context of a number of other actions and changes already announced."
It said its external audit would now be put out to tender. "PricewaterhouseCoopers, the current AIB Group external auditors, will not participate in the tender process and will not, therefore, go forward for reappointment at the AIB AGM on 29th May," the statement read. The tender process is expected to be completed by mid-May.
AIB has tried to avoid suggestions that PwC was in any way to blame for the Allfirst fiasco, saying that it was no part of an auditor's job to detect fraud.
Mr Gary Kennedy, AIB Group Director of Finance said: "We would like to express our appreciation to PwC for the work they have carried out for AIB Group to date. We have the highest regard for PwC as a firm and look forward to using a range of their services in the future."
Shareholders and analysts reacted negatively when AIB refused to discipline any senior officials after a report by US banking expert Mr Eugene Ludwig said that a combination of bullying, laziness and weak management allowed trader Mr John Rusnak to run up the losses under the noses of his superiors.
His report added: "Nothing has come to our attention during the course of our review that indicates that anyone at AIB or Allfirst, outside of the Allfirst treasury group, were involved in, or had any knowledge that, fraudulent or improper trading activity was occuring."
Still, AIB's sacking of PwC will inevitably be seen as a kind of punishment, whether or not merited. Mr Ludwig criticised control systems as 'inadequate', and no auditor, especially in a bank, can expect to escape that kind of criticism.
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