Statement on the passing of Queen Elizabeth II

This sad week marks the death of Queen Elizabeth II, Britain's long-serving head of state.

On behalf of the Lafferty family and Lafferty Group, I extend our condolences to her family and the people of the United Kingdom.

Britain has been good to us – first by enabling a 17-year old Irishman to turn up in London in 1968 and become a Chartered Accountant – something not then possible in an Ireland where one had to pay considerable fees to become "articled".

This led to the opportunity to become a journalist with one of the world's greatest newspapers, the Financial Times.

The launch of Lafferty Group followed and with it the opportunity to meet the Queen and Prince Philip on the Royal Yacht when we were granted a Queen's Award for Exports.

Decades later when we were being vetted for the privilege of becoming an Institute providing retail banking education and examinations under UK company law that Queen's Award was one of the many factors that led the judges to conclude that Lafferty Group should be authorised to take the new name of Retail Banking Institute.

We are proud to be headquartered in London.

May Her Majesty rest in peace.

Michael Lafferty