The Netherlands, Britain to go to court over Icesave money

The Netherlands is to take legal action against Iceland in an effort to recover €1.3bn lent to repay savers who lost money when Icelandic bank Landsbanki went bankrupt in 2008.


This weekend the people of Iceland rejected a second deal worked out to repay the money in a referendum.
In a statement, Dutch finance minister Jan Kees de Jager said the issue would now be dealt with in court, pointing out that Iceland must meet its international obligations.
‘I am very disappointed that the Icesave agreement did not get through. This is not good for Iceland, nor for the Netherlands. The time for negotiations is over. Iceland remains obliged to repay. It is now up to the courts to decide,’ De Jager said.
Britain lent Iceland €2.5bn to repay its savers and the British government says it is ‘disappointed’ by the no vote.
Under the terms of the rejected deal, Iceland would have paid the money back with 3% interest to the Netherlands and 3.3% to Britain between 2016 and 2046.
Related links
Britain and the Netherlands to sue Iceland over lost deposits

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