Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 15 April 2014

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation

Access to Finance for SMEs: Bank of Ireland, Ulster Bank and AIB

3:00 pm

Ms Ellvena Graham:

I will take the first question. We find that more of our loans are now getting drawn down more quickly. Last year, we saw customers getting approval but not having the confidence to spend the money. In quarter 1, we find our lending is almost three times what it was in quarter 1 of 2013. There is a greater uptake in the drawdown of loans. We are encouraging that.

It is important we spend time with the customer. The relationship manager must explain the data and financial information we need. We look for quarterly financial statements but we find that if our relationship manager works closely with the customer, if all the information is in place it makes it more simple. That is why we can approve 94% of what comes in through formal application. Much improvement was needed with our relationship managers and we have put them through an accreditation programme of credit skills training and cash flow lending because many of them are not skilled in that area. Our programme is accredited by the Chartered Banker Institute in the UK. The more skilled the relationship managers, the better they are in dealing with customers, which means a better quality of application coming into us. It is a two-way street.