Sinn Fein Finance Spokesperson Pearse Doherty TD has claimed that AIB were adopting a “No Irish need apply” policy by offering better savings rate for German customers.
Deputy Doherty said effectively Irish customers were subsidising German savers at AIB.
He said the fact that the bank is 99% State owned only adds insult to injury for Irish customers.
Deputy Doherty said “The fact that savers in Germany can avail of a deposit interest rate far above the ECB deposit rate while Irish mortgage holders are paying well above the ECB lending rate is a disgrace. The fact that the bank is 99% State owned only adds insult to injury for Irish customers. We have a State owned bank favouring customers in Germany over customers at home.
“At home, AIB are ripping off customers on Standard Variable Rate mortgages, ruthlessly chasing those in arrears and failing SMEs in debt or in need of credit. Yet, for German savers they can justify offering savings rates of 1.4%. That means a saver in Germany can get three times the interest an Irish saver can. The website states savers must be ‘resident in the Federal Republic of Germany and not a resident of Ireland’- literally a case of Irish need not apply.
“Minster’s Noonan usual Pontius Pilate act does not cut it. He holds regular meetings with AIB and needs to raise this issue with the bank as soon as possible. The Irish people paid over €20bn to save AIB and since then their treatment of Irish people has been disgraceful. Today’s news is yet another kick in the teeth for AIB customers.”
Tags: