Padraic Halpin, Reuters
The Central Bank has fined Bank of Ireland €24.5 million for technology failures the lender took more than a decade to fix.
Handing down one of its largest ever penalties, the Central Bank said IT service continuity deficiencies were repeatedly identified in third party reports from 2008 onwards but that Bank of Ireland only started to address them in 2015, resolving the issue four years later.
The failure at the State's largest bank by assets to have a robust framework and internal controls in place could have left it unable to ensure continuity of critical services and led to adverse effects on customers and the financial system, the Central Bank said.
Bank of Ireland admitted to five contraventions over the 12-year period, and the fine was reduced from €35 million in accordance with a settlement discount.
The Central Bank said steps taken by the lender since 2015 had improved its IT service continuity framework and internal controls.
