Regulator to ban banks from giving loans to their bosses

BANKS will be restricted from giving loans to their top bosses similar to the €84 million borrowed by former Anglo chairman Sean FitzPatrick, under new powers announced by the Financial Regulator.

Matthew Elderfield will also clamp down on bank executives from holding positions on boards of other organisations, to end what he described as a situation where “close personal relationships in boards” exacerbated bad lending practices, leading to the financial crisis.

But the regulator said new laws going through the Dáil giving powers to his office do not go far enough.