KBC signals that cuts to fixed mortgage rates ending

KBC Bank Ireland which is positioning itself as a “challenger bank” to the main mortgage lenders has signalled that cuts to its fixed rate mortgages are likely coming to an end.

It comes as the Irish unit reported its best financial figures since the banking crash as it wrote back €50m in loan impairment releases, mainly because the house prices have recovered faster than anticipated. That helped boost net profits to €70.4m in the first quarter.

It expects to release loan impairments of €120m to €160m during the year. Its Belgian parent, which since the crash had injected €1.5bn into the Irish bank, formally dispelled this year any lingering doubts it planned to close up in Ireland.