Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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177. To ask the Minister for Finance the amount of funds currently covered by the deposit guarantee scheme; the number of institutions covered; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32686/14]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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The Central Bank of Ireland is responsible for the operation of the Deposit Protection (Guarantee) Scheme (DGS), which covers licensed credit institutions operating in the State.  Each credit institution covered by the DGS is required to maintain a balance in the Deposit Protection Account (DPA) equivalent to 0.2% of their total deposits in order to fund the DGS. Over 400 institutions are currently covered by the DGS.  This number includes all credit unions in Ireland. 

While the total deposits in the financial sector in Ireland at end February 2014 was €465bn, the Central Bank advises me that this includes deposits such as interbank deposits which are not eligible for coverage under the DGS scheme. The total amount for the purposes of DGS scheme is much lower at approximately €185bn. The level of deposits actually covered would be lower again as only amounts up to €100,000 per eligible depositor per credit institution are covered. The Central Bank is currently working with credit institutions to extract data on the actual amount in such accounts covered under the Deposit Guarantee Scheme.

The new EU Directive on Deposit Guarantee Schemes which will come into effect in mid 2015 requires that all credit institutions mark deposits in such a way that allows for the immediate identification of deposits that are eligible for protection under the Deposit Guarantee Scheme. The Central Bank is currently working with credit institutions to meet the requirements of the Directive.