New regulations which will allow credit unions to extend their long-term lending facilities have been signed by the Minister for Finance Brian Cowen.
Mr Cowen confirmed he had today signed the regulations under section 35 of the Credit Union Act 1997.
They implement the recommendation of the Review Group on Longer-Term Lending Limits that Section 35 lending limits should be increased.
Currently, just 20 per cent of a credit union's loans portfolio may be outstanding for periods in excess of five years, of which half (10 per cent) may be outstanding for periods in excess of 10 years.
The new regulations increase that to 40 per cent for loans over five years, and to 15 per cent over 10 years for those and over ten years for those credit unions approved by the Registrar of Credit Unions.
The review group was appointed by the Minister with representation from the Irish League of Credit Unions, the Credit Union Development Association, the Registrar of Credit Unions and chaired by the Department of Finance.
"As Minister for Finance I have supported the development needs of credit unions to ensure they continue to provide for the social and financial needs of the communities they serve. The increased lending limits for credit unions approved by the registrar will allow credit union lending to grow and develop with appropriate regulatory safeguards," Mr Cowen said.