Bank of Ireland has exceeded its €3.5 billion lending target for small and medium firms for 2012, the bank said today.

The businesses banking division confirmed that it has already achieved the target for new and increased credit facilities for businesses and farmers, and has recorded a 16 per cent rise in approvals to date compared with 2011.

The bank said increased demand from several sectors in the Irish economy was responsible for the rise.

Director of business banking with Bank of Ireland Mark Cunningham said there were particular increases seen in the healthcare, manufacturing and hospitality sectors, and agri lending was also strong. Increased demand for Asset and Commercial loan finance has also been a feature.

"Of particular importance is the fact that lending to businesses and farmers has increased in all regions throughout Ireland, under-pinning the bank’s confidence in its nationwide branch network," he said. "Lending to Dublin businesses was up by 27 per cent compared to last year. With over 40 per cent of businesses located in the capital this indicates that confidence is slowly returning, as evidenced by the growth we have been seeing in credit demand from viable businesses in the second half of this year .”

The figures exclude credit approved for customers seeking restructured facilities.