Rabobank gains 1,300 Irish clients in first month

Dutch group Rabobank has attracted almost €50 million in deposits from Irish savers just a month after entering the Irish market.

Some 1,300 customers have opened deposit accounts with RaboDirect.ie, depositing an average of more than €38,000 each.

The Dutch-owned bank entered the market with an instant-access deposit account, offering a variable rate of 3 per cent - then the best offer in the market.

The move sparked competition in the savings market, prompting Northern Rock to increase its demand rate to 3.05 per cent.

Greg McAweeney, general manager of RaboDirect, said that half of the people who registered with the bank online were subsequently opening a savings account.

"The current conversion rate demonstrates that consumer inertia can no longer be assumed as a means of protecting market share. We have customers ranging from the young to pensioners who have switched from the traditional banks," Mr McAweeney said.

Meanwhile, Permanent TSB has opened 34,000 new current accounts so far this year. This figure comprises 11,000 existing customers upgrading their accounts and 23,000 new customers.

Permanent TSB introduced a free current account in February to coincide with the introduction of an industry code of practice on switching accounts.

But only 7,000 of Permanent TSB's new customers used the switching code, under which the old bank must manage the transfer of all direct debits and standing orders to the new bank and then close the old account.

According to Niall O'Grady, the bank's head of marketing, the remaining 16,000 new customers were opening their first current account or decided to avoid using the code because they wanted to keep their old bank account open.