Ms Anne Marie McKiernan:

Only a small amount of funds is affected by the cap. With an average deposit size of €4,000 in the sector and with many credit unions having self-imposed caps, well below €100,000, we felt it was an appropriate risk-based measure to reduce the prospect of members losing funds in a credit union if their credit union needed to be resolved or if there was any unexpected matter that would cause the failure of a credit union. It does not impact on the business model of credit unions because there is such a small percentage of funds over the cap already in place. We felt that a measure that can reduce risk and vulnerability and at the same time not negatively impact on the business model or the development of the sector was an appropriate risk-based measure to undertake at this time.