AIB and Bank of Ireland ‘nothing to fear’ from new buffers introduced by Central Bank

The Central Bank has instructed AIB and Bank of Ireland to hold more capital as a buffer in future years to help protect the country from any repeat of the financial crash.

The measures, taken under initiatives called macro-prudential capital buffers, are part of efforts across the EU to rein in the threat that banks will lend too much during the good times and go bust when the economic cycle turns.

Analysts said, though, that AIB and Bank of Ireland have nothing to fear from the buffers which, in fact, only start to come into force in just over three years.