The agency has confirmed that the amount came from the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF), was paid out in a single transaction and was intended for a company to which the fund has previously made a payment.
In the phone-phishing swindle, someone pretended to be a representative of a legitimate planned recipient of funds.
The theft has been reported to gardaí and other relevant authorities. “Following receipt of a complaint of alleged fraud, An Garda Síochána has commenced an investigation into this matter,” said a spokesperson for the force.
The NTMA said there is “no suggestion” of an IT breach, or any threat to the agency’s IT systems.
NTMA staff raised concerns early last week over the suspected payment. “On review it became clear that the request for payment – what is termed a capital call – was fraudulent,” said an spokesperson for the agency.
“The NTMA immediately reported the matter to the relevant authorities, including An Garda Síochána.”
At the launch of the NTMA’s annual report yesterday, chief executive Frank O’Connor confirmed the fraud and that the agency will now review its operations.
“We will have to look hard at our own systems, our own protocols, and the investigation will fully get into that,” he said, adding that the agency will consider if more controls are needed.
The NTMA is tasked with managing Ireland’s national debt and was recently given the additional responsibility of managing the two new sovereign wealth funds, which are expected to hold up to €100bn within the next 10 years.
As of last year, ISIF had committed €8.8bn to 248 investments and had a total €16.6bn fund.
An NTMA spokesperson said the fraudulent payment request made to ISIF from a third party was designed and timed to pass as a legitimate request for funds from the investee company.
“We are conducting a thorough examination of every aspect of this to fully understand what occurred. Our immediate focus is on recovering the funds and to investigate fully this matter.”
Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe said the fraud was “regrettable and extremely rare”, and that efforts would continue to track down the €5m.
Additional reporting: Reuters
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