AIB - ALLIED IRISH BANKS has sold its American subsidiary ALLFIRST to the American bank M AND T BANK CORP. The Irish bank will receive 22.5% of the capital of the new entity, as well as $886 million cash, "of which 450 million will be used to purchase AIB shares on the stock exchange". The new group will have 713 branches in six States and Washington DC and by number 18 in the American banking industry with total assets of $49 bn.