Reduced competition in Irish banking following the withdrawal of Halifax and Postbank from the market is to become a priority for the National Consumer Agency (NCA), according to chief executive Ann Fitzgerald.
As the agency yesterday assumed the consumer information and education functions of the Financial Regulator, Ms Fitzgerald expressed concern that some banks were insisting that consumers who switched their mortgages from Halifax moved all their accounts to the bank. She said she also wanted the agency to address transparency of costs for consumers across the financial services market and increase financial education for consumers.
Staff from the Financial Regulator’s office have been seconded to work on the integration of these functions into the National Consumer Agency ahead of legislation that is being drawn up to transfer the responsibilities on a statutory basis to the agency.
