ACCBank sets aside €300m for bad debts

Rabobank has increased its provisions for bad loans at ACCBank by €300 million, bringing to €2.2 billion the total it has set aside for the Irish bank since the collapse of the property market.

The figures emerged as Rabobank Group, the biggest mortgage-lender in the Netherlands, said profits had fallen by 20 per cent in 2012 and flagged more bad loans in its home market. Full-year net income fell to €2.11 billion from €2.63 billion a year-earlier, the lender said.

Loan-loss provisions rose by €744 million to €2.4 billion as property, construction, transport and greenhouse-horticulture clients suffered from a weak economy in the Netherlands. The €300 million set aside for bad loans at ACCBank last year is the latest in a series of provisions made by the Dutch bank. Rabobank is the 100 per cent owner of ACCBank, which has suffered heavily due its exposure to developer loans. In 2011, the parent said it would have to sit out the problems at its Irish subsidiary over the next three to five years.

Retail banking

Rabobank also operates in Ireland through international bank Rabobank Ireland and online retail banking arm Rabodirect. The group did not break out figures for these businesses yesterday.

Formed in 1898, Rabobank will cut 3,000 jobs in its retail bank in the Netherlands in 2013 and 2014, and said it must “scale down” staff pay to reduce costs as customers switch to online and mobile banking. (Additional reporting, Bloomberg)