Lending limits on credit unions set to be 'significantly' increased 

Total capacity for house and business lending will increase from €2.9bn to €9.9bn

The Central Bank of Ireland said the changes will come into effect on September 30. Picture: Leah Farrell/Rollingnews.ie

The Central Bank of Ireland has announced a number of changes to credit union regulations which will "significantly increase” the amount of money the sector can lend out in the form of mortgages and loans to businesses.

Under the current system, house and business lending by credit unions was limited to a combined 7.5% of the institution’s total assets. Within this, total business loans cannot exceed more than 5% of total assets.