Opinion
John Walsh: Irish high street is lonely place for banks, but it’s not necessarily a bad thing
The number of high street banks in Ireland has fallen from 14 to three over the last 20 years, but the sector is much more secure thanks to EU regulations
The Irish high street is a lonely place for banks compared to 20 years ago. Back in the noughties there were roughly 14 retail banks plying their trade in the Irish market, whereas now there are three.
This has inevitably prompted accusations that the lack of competition has enabled Bank of Ireland, AIB and PTSB to profiteer at the expense of their customers.
The reality is much more nuanced, however. Just as the plethora of ...
