The Anglo Irish Tapes

maybe the stage is set for a new political party in ireland...something like an irish version of the german AfD with a plan to fix the current mess and maybe “reinvent” the system...and without any legacy burden...
not a short-term solution but might change things for the better in the long run...if they got enough votes that is, which seems unlikely...

Take all our money out of the banks and put it in the post office or credit union

crusher000 wrote: »

Take all our money out of the banks and put it in the post office or credit union

Not content with f**king up the country, the a***holes then try to nobble any chance the ordinary plebs of getting a better deal that the ones the banksters are offering (see 13th May 2013 media article below).

What happened to this concept people talk about..... 'competition'...... not even plain and simple 'competition'...... but 'FAIR competition'.

Oooooooh...... I don't think the banksters like that particular concept do they ?

The feckers want it every way..... as long as it's 'their way'.


Banks lobby for An Post to cut deposit rate

By John Walsh, Business Correspondent

Monday, May 13, 2013

Banks are piling pressure on the Government to force An Post to cut interest rates on its savings accounts because they are more competitive that those offered by other financial institutions.

The three domestic banks have been lobbying the Department of Finance to introduce interest rate reductions on An Post savings accounts. They have argued that the higher interest rates offered by An Post distort competition and create an uneven playing field in attracting deposit flows.

The department declined to comment, although a department source said, "this is an issue and it is something we are looking at".

The three banks also declined to comment. However, sources at two confirmed they have asked the Government to lower the interest rates applied by An Post.

The current rates on An Post products include:

* 7% on the three-year savings bonds;

* 12% on the four-year national solidarity bond;

* 15% on the five-year savings certificate;

* 17% on the six-year instalment savings;

* 45% on the 10-year national solidarity bond.

These rates have helped An Post soak up a huge amount of one-off large sum deposits. The banks offer a number of fixed rate and term accounts. Bank of Ireland offers 2% on regular savings accounts, AIB 2.85% on its regular savings account, and Permanent TSB also offers 2.85% on its regular savings accounts.

There was a cut in the interest on An Post savings accounts last December, the first rate decrease since 2007. The ECB lowered the main interest rate for the eurozone to a historic low of 0.5% a week before last.

The cost and availability of deposits has caused huge problems for the domestic banks. Because of the vulnerable state of the sector, the banks had to pay punitive interest rates on deposit accounts, which squeezed profitability. In some cases the banks are paying more for the cost of funding than they are charging on products — the multi-billion euro tracker mortgage books are a case in point.

Over the past two years the three banks have attracted new deposits and have lowered the rates on deposit accounts. Funding costs were eased further by the removal of the Government’s eligible liabilities guarantee scheme at the end of March. Further progress is hampered by competition from An Post, they claim.

The NTMA, which is responsible for setting the rates of An Post savings products, said "it constantly keeps rates under review".

Meanwhile, chairman of the Dáil’s Public Accounts Committee John McGuinness says probes into the banking collapse are being blocked. The former Fianna Fáil minister says the committee has been denied access by the finance department to key files about what happened on the night of the bank guarantee.

This story appeared in the printed version of the Irish Examiner Monday, May 13, 2013

Unfortunately P. Breathnach has a point. Nevertheless, it doesn't take away the fact that the banks, in conclusion with each other have attempted to stifle competition, competition which was providing financially better, as in better interest rates, to customers........ they didn't like that and they tried to stifle it.

And that makes a mockery of 'free competition'.

There are close relationships ongoing between banks and the post office organisations both in Ireland and in UK.

For instance, in Ireland Danske Bank (formerly National Irish), after closing their branch network down moreorless in Ireland, have established a close working relationship with An Post via offering banking services via the An Post branch network.

And in UK the Post Office accounts are in essence actually Bank of Ireland accounts dressed up as UK Post Office accounts.

Is anything actually what it seems in banking ?

Its interesting reading about the guy that fraudulently claimed €150,000 from welfare over a number of years, he got four years in prison. The state managed to turn that case around in two years.

Like for like the bankers should get life in prison for the amounts they stole from the state. Not big pensions and life on the golf courses.....

Shane Ross (@Shane_RossTD) tweeted at 4:53 PM on Wed, Jul 03, 2013:
Oireachtas Inquiries Bill passed by 100+ votes! Will return to haunt us when bankers injunct TDs & it slumps into party political circus.
(https://twitter.com/Shane_RossTD/status/352454957896712193)

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