Irish credit unions seek bigger slice of mortgage market despite entry of new competitors 

Touching on its competitors, ILCU chief executive David Malone said credit unions 'will not make decisions on loans based on algorithms'

David Malone, CEO, Irish League of Credit Unions (left) with Gabriel Makhlouf, Governor, Central Bank of Ireland. Pic. Robbie Reynolds

The mortgage market will be a key growth opportunity for Irish credit unions in the next five years, despite the influx of new competitors into a market that has become highly concentrated over the past several years. 

David Malone, chief executive of the Irish League of Credit Unions (ILCU) has welcomed double-digit growth in the total value of mortgages held by the group in 2025, which rose by 26% to over €750m.

When credit unions not represented by the ILCU are included, this figure rose even further to €992m in 2025, just short of the €1bn milestone.

Speaking to the Irish Examiner, Mr Malone said the league's growing mortgage book will be "very important" for the future of credit unions.

"If you look at other international jurisdictions like the US or Canada, mortgages are a key part of a credit union's elements. "

"About 12% of our loan book now is in mortgages, and we are growing significantly."

Last year saw the Central Bank of Ireland give credit unions the green light to lend more money for home mortgages by increasing the proportion of mortgage lending to a credit union's total assets.

The new limits saw the sector’s total lending capacity for home and business loans rise from €2.9bn to €9.9bn, an increase of more than 340%. 

"We now have the capacity to loan up to €6.6bn in mortgages," Mr Malone said. "We are going to grow our mortgage offerings in a very phased, careful way, but we see ourselves as being a very significant player in Ireland's mortgage market."

But the ILCU is not the only lender with its sights set on Ireland's mortgage market, which became significantly more concentrated following the exit of Ulster Bank and KBC. 

In 2024, Spanish lender Bankinter announced it would start offering mortgages in Ireland through its Leitrim-based broker, Avant Money. 

Since then, Bankinter has welcomed double-digit growth in Ireland, with mortgages making up about 80% of its total loans. The bank's mortgage book in Ireland has grown by 27% in the last year, with the lender now holding a 7% share of Ireland's mortgage market. 

Meanwhile, digital bank Revolut is continuing to work on introducing a mortgage product in Ireland, despite delaying its initial timeline targeting a late-2025 launch.

While the Lithuanian-founded neobank has not given a new release date, Revolut said it has a Dublin-based team is working on adapting the offering for Ireland.

'Not based on algorithms'

Addressing Ireland's new mortgage market competitors, Mr Malone said: "We have gone from 0 to €1bn in the space of three or four years. We offer very competitive rates, but we also offer that human touch, which is so important. This is a life decision at the end of the day.

"We have a digital offering, which has only strengthened in the last few years, but we have humans. 

"Credit unions are very different. We will not be making decisions on loans based on algorithms. This will not have a "computer says no" approach. We have a very unique proposition compared to our competitors in that space."