Terence Flanagan
Ceist:78. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Finance the sanctions applied by the Central Bank of Ireland on moneylenders; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39740/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraThursday, 16 October 2014
Ceisteanna (78, 79)
Terence Flanagan
Ceist:79. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Finance if he will provide examples of the Central Bank of Ireland refusing to grant moneylender licences at annual renewal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39741/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
I propose to take Questions Nos. 78 and 79 together.
Compliance with supervisory and legislative requirements is monitored by the Central Bank on an ongoing basis through a robust annual licensing process, advertising and market intelligence monitoring and themed and institution-specific inspections. Issues identified are addressed with the relevant firms.
The Central Bank has drawn my attention to two cases in which it reached settlement agreements with moneylenders. These are available in http://www.centralbank.ie/publications/Pages/settlement-agreements.aspx. In one case dated 10 July 2007, the moneylender was reprimanded and it ceased collecting repayments in respect of some credit agreements bought from an unauthorised credit provider. In the other case dated 18 September 2013, the Central Bank reprimanded the moneylender and required it to pay a monetary penalty of €8,000.
Firms considering applying for a moneylending licence will usually discuss their proposed application with the Central Bank with a view to identifying all legislative and supervisory requirements relating to such a licence. As a result of this interaction, a refusal of an application will not generally arise as perceived difficulties will usually result in the non-submission/withdrawal or modification of an application. The renewal process is similar and issues may be resolved without a formal refusal. The Bank has drawn my attention to a judgement of the Irish Financial Services Appeals Tribunal ( IFSAT ) in May 2014 which upheld a decision of the Central Bank of Ireland (the Central Bank ) to revoke the moneylender's licence. This is available at
http://www.centralbank.ie/press-area/press-releases/Pages/TribunalupholdsdecisionbyCentralBanktorevokemoneylenderslicence.aspx.