Tag Archives: Bank of Ireland

This morning.

Further to the Bank of Ireland’s decision to close 103 branches across the island of Ireland….

…John O’Connell, General Secretary of the Financial Services Union, said Bank of Ireland could not be allowed to withdraw a vital service from the elderly, from people with no internet access, from people with literacy problems at this time of increased anxiety.

He added:

“The announcement this morning by Bank of Ireland to close 103 branches will shock both staff and customers alike. How can Bank of Ireland think it is appropriate to make this announcement when the country is in the middle of a pandemic. It is a shameful act which needs to be reversed.”

Full list of closures here

Decision to close Bank of Ireland branches ‘shameful’ (RTÉ)

RollingNews

Meanwhile…

Bank of Ireland CEO Frances McDonagh

RollingNews

This morning.

Via RTÉ:

A spokesperson for the bank said it had launched a voluntary redundancy programme that would see staff numbers reducing to fewer than 9,000, from a current workforce of 10,400.

Earlier, the bank reported a loss of €669 million before tax for the first six months of the year, after putting aside €937 million, mainly to cover losses related to Covid-19 loan repayment breaks.

In its half year results, the bank said Covid-19 had a material impact on the group’s financial performance and outlook….

BOI to cut 1,400 jobs as it sets aside €937m for potential bad loans (RTE News)

Rollingnews

Bank of Ireland CEO Francesca McDonagh and AIB CEO Colin Hunt leaving the Department of Finance after a meeting with Minister of Finance Pahal Donohoe in March

This morning.

Good times.

Payment breaks won’t be extended beyond 6 months – Bank of Ireland CEO (RTÉ)

Bank of Ireland falls into loss of €235m due to Covid-19 impact (Independent.ie)

Rollingnews

From top Frances McDonagh (left), Bank of Ireland CEO, and Colin Hunt, AIB CEO, leaving the Department of Finance after a meeting with Minister of Finance Paschal Donohue on Wednesday;  AIB’s new fees and charges

This morning.

A series of tough new fees and charges were sent to AIB customers and Bank of Ireland business account holders were informed of a 33% increase in charges for cash lodgements or withdrawals.

SD writes:

Great comedy is all about timing…

Calls for AIB and Bank of Ireland to delay new charges (RTÉ)

Rollingnews

What about rents, anyone?

EARLIER:

Coronavirus: Italy suspends mortgage payments amid lockdown (Independent.co.uk)

Meanwhile…

Getty

Earlier: Locking Everything Down

This morning/afternoon.

Again?

Bank of Ireland has confirmed it is experiencing some problems with some of its systems this morning.

The issues are impacting ATMs and stopping customers from logging into the Banking 365 website and app.

However, the bank says payments are being processed and debit and credit card point of sale transactions are still going through.

Bank of Ireland seeing more system problems today (RTÉ)

Rollingnews

Wilbur Ross

“We like Ireland very much because, unlike the Club Med countries, it doesn’t need structural reform of the economy All it really needs is to get through the financial crisis that was caused when its banks went berserk. But Ireland’s fundamentals are still there…Ireland will once again become the Celtic Tiger.”

Financier Wilbur Ross in 2011 after taking a 35 per cent stake in Bank of Ireland.

Now US Commerce Secretary, Wilbur Ross with Simon Coveney in Washington DC last October

The accusation is quite simple. Ross, through his investment firm WL Ross & Co., took a near 35% stake in the Bank of Ireland in 2011, during the depths of the crisis. In 2012, he joined the company’s board of directors, but by 2014 he was selling his stake.

He made 500 million euros ($682 million), selling his shares at 26 to 33 euro cents a share over a few months. Ross stepped down from WL Ross & Co. – which is currently being sued by former employees for fee gouging – when he joined the Trump administration.

That would all be fine if it weren’t for the fact that it was later found that the Bank of Ireland was using deceptive accounting to make its balance sheet appear healthier than it was. Without that, Ross would not have been able to sell his shares at such a premium.

This alleged deception was discovered in 2015, shortly after Ross sold his stake, and of course the bank’s stock price suffered as a result. Ross, who as a board member, should have been familiar with the going-ons at the company, especially after doing due diligence and selling at the top.

And, if in the course of doing due diligence, he found out that there was something wrong with the bank’s accounting, he had a duty to report that to shareholders. If he didn’t, and he sold with that knowledge, as the report points out, that is a violation of insider trading laws.

European Parliament Report Accuses Wilbur Ross of Insider Trading (Mother Jones)

More incredibly embarrassing, possibly criminal, news about our Commerce Secretar (Business Insider)

Pics: Getty/Rollingnews

Former Bank of Ireland Chief Executive Richie Boucher

Asked about whether the bank had any issues impending similar to those that were identified at Permanent TSB in relation to customers and the mortgage interest rates they were entitled to secure, Mr Boucher said if the bank had any material disclosure of that kind, it would be making it.

“I’m talking to the market today. Anything that would have a material impact on our reputation is something I would disclose. If we identify a mistake, we engage with the regulatory authorities and do remediation with the customers expeditiously,” he said.

August, 2015

The bank announced on Friday that Mr Boucher had informed the company of his intention to leave and said a selection process was under way to appoint a new CEO. Mr Boucher said he would would continue in his role “pending completion” of this process, having led the bank since February 2009.
Mr Boucher said that while he enjoyed his job and was excited about the group’s “transformational investment” in its IT systems, the time was right to hand over the baton.

February 2017

Earlier this week Bank of Ireland said it had identified another 6,000 customers who were wrongly removed from low-interest tracker mortgage loans. This brings to 10,300 the number of people affected by the controversy at Bank of Ireland alone.

he total cost of putting customers back on low tracker rates, refunding them for overcharged interest payments, and compensating them at a rate of 10pc of the refunds, will cost the bank up to €200m. This is up from €26m previously set aside by the bank.

November 2017

Good times.

PTSB disaster sparks wider Central Bank tracker probe (August 2, 2915, RTÉ)

Richie Boucher to step down as Bank of Ireland CEO (Irish Times, March 24, 2017)

Tracker controversy may stop Bank of Ireland paying a dividend (Novemeber 19, 2017)

Rollingnews

Bank of Ireland has said the cost of compensating thousands of mortgage customers it overcharged could rise to €200m from €25m after it identified 6,000 new cases.

The affair will curtail the institution’s interest margin by 1 basis point from 2018 onwards, the bank said in a stock market notification.

…In an update to the market on Thursday afternoon, Bank of Ireland said it will set aside a further €150m to €175m in its current fiscal year to cover redress and compensation for the 6,000 new cases.

The bank had earlier set aside €25m to compensate 600 tracker customers it previously identified and another 3,700 customers who had the wrong interest rate applied to their mortgages.

Bank of Ireland expects mortgage compensations costs to rise to €200m (Financial Times)

Pic: RTÉ