merrion street

Minister of State for Economic Development, Michael Ring T.D., today issued an invite to interested parties to comment on a proposed new model of community banking. The invite is part of a Programme for a Partnership Government commitment to investigate new models of community banking such as the Kiwibank model in New Zealand, or the German Sparkassen model of local public banks that operate within well-defined regions.

Opening the consultation process Minister of State Ring said, “The Programme for a Partnership Government commits to investigate alternative models of community banking. Given the challenges faced by the banking sector in recent years, I am pleased to be able to invite interested parties to put forward their views on whether a new approach to local banking should be introduced in Ireland“.

The Department of Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs is working with the Department of Finance to evaluate the community banking concept and is undertaking a period of consultation with relevant stakeholders in order to evaluate its viability within an Irish context.

The consultation process will run for 4 weeks until Wednesday 29 March 2017. Further details are available on the consultation section of the Department’s website, www.ahrrga.gov.ie. Submissions can be made online or emailed to Laure Garcia (Laure.Garcia@ahg.gov.ie).