The businessman, once Ireland’s richest man, said the decisions were “stupid but completely legal” resulting in the loss of his fortune, reports Breaking News.
Former billionaire Sen Quinn was Ireland’s richest man before declaring bankruptcy in 2012.
His new memoir, In My Own Words, details his rise and fall from wealth to multiple scandals.
As the founder of Quinn Group, which operates in a variety of industries including cement and concrete products, glass containers, general insurance and real estate, Mr Quinn’s net worth was more than €3.5 billion when he was named to the Forbes Rich List in 2008.
The trader lost most of his fortune after investing heavily in Anglo Irish Bank using contracts for difference (CFDs), a type of financial contract that requires the buyer to pay the seller the difference between the current value of the asset.
Its value at the time of conclusion of the contract.
In an interview with RTÉ magazine’s Primetime, Mr Quinn said it was “totally untrue” to claim he was the architect of his own downfall, reports Breaking News.
“The position is very clear. I spent around 600 million, 630 million on shares and CFDs which was stupid but totally legal,” he said, reports Breaking News.
He added: “I bet 630 million which was about 15 months profits. Plenty of people lost 15 months profits. That wasn’t a major problem. Was I foolish? Yes. I’ve openly admitted, was I the chief architect of buying Anglo shares? The answer is yes, I was. Perfectly legal and perfectly within our mean,” reports Breaking News.
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