AIB IS to pass on the ECB’s recent rate increase to some customers from the close of business today.

Savers with the bank’s online personal savings plan and its five-year special term account will benefit from an interest rate increase of 0.5 per cent annual equivalent rate. Holders of access deposit 30 accounts will enjoy a rate increase of 0.35 per cent AER for amounts between €250,000 and €500,000, and 0.5 per cent if their savings range from €500,000 to €2 million. The rates paid on AIB’s regular saver account and parent saver plan will be 0.25 per cent higher.

These increases follow the 0.25 per cent jump in the ECB’s base lending rate announced earlier this month. AIB mortgages that track the ECB rate will increase in line with the recent hike, while the rates on standard variable and loan-to-value variable rate home loans remain “under review”.

The lender also announced plans yesterday to ditch the familiar Laser and Maestro card, replacing it with the Visa debit card from next year. The bank said it would replace the debit cards in the second half of 2012.

The move will pave the way for the lender to introduce contactless payments for small transactions, which will allow Visa debit holders to pay for purchases of €15 or under by holding their card over a reader at certain retail outlets.

There are additional security features in the new card that help prevent it from being used by unauthorised people. The card can only be used a certain number of times or for a certain value before a PIN is required.

AIB currently has about 1.4 million debit cards in circulation.