Central Bank lends a record €70bn

THE Central Bank lent domestic banks a record €70 billion in special funding in February, a jump of €19bn, underlining the fragility of the sector and the state’s exposure to it.

The jump in handouts increased pressure on Taoiseach Enda Kenny to secure more support for the country’s lenders from eurozone leaders at a summit in Brussels.

Irish banks, at the root of the financial crisis, are dependent on European Central Bank (ECB) funding and the Central Bank after suffering deposit outflows and being frozen out of interbank lending markets.