Bad news for certain employees of Bank of Ireland – the firm has unveiled details of which assets it’s likely to dispose of in order to meet the terms of a European Union restructuring plan. Asset management, pensions and life assurance businesses are all up for sale.

BoI, which revealed losses €1.8bn in the nine months to December 2009, is being forced to meet the terms of a restructuring plan under EU rules, having received both a cash injection from the government as well as transferring loans across to NAMA.

The decision to dispose of Dublin-based Bank of Ireland Asset Management (BIAM) shouldn’t come as a massive surprise. Its assets under management now stand at €25bn, down from a peak of €60bn, which reflects a tough few years for the firm.

Also up for sale is the New Ireland Assurance Company, which includes pension, life assurance and related products. It employs around 180 direct salespeople, distributes its products through 1,600 registered brokers and has a book of around €12bn.

It will also sell ICS Building Society, which has a mortgage loans book of around €7bn.

The scale of BoI’s losses were obviously fairly sizable, but in terms of capital requirements it compares well with its Irish peers. It’s seeking to raise roughly €2.7bn in new capital, while AIB and Anglo Irish Bank need €7.4bn and €8.3bn, respectively.