More than 100 jobs to be lost at Lombard Ireland

MORE THAN 100 jobs are to go at Lombard Ireland, the asset financing subsidiary of Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS). Some 84 jobs are to be lost in the Republic, while 24 employees in the company’s Northern Irish division will lose their jobs.

The company, which has offices in Dublin and Belfast, currently employs 149 staff in the Republic and 36 in Northern Ireland. The company said it was hoping to create 17 new jobs across Ireland.

Lombard provides loans to businesses which are seeking to buy assets such as machinery, vehicles or equipment. The company has had a long-standing presence in Ireland – in 1975, Ulster Bank acquired the Irish interests of leasing and hire purchasing firm Lombard Bank. The new entity, Lombard Ulster, was well known north and south of the Border.

Although Lombard is based in Ulster Bank’s Dublin building, it has been a separate company to Ulster Bank since 2001. Both are owned by British banking and insurance giant Royal Bank of Scotland.

Concern about Royal Bank of Scotland’s presence in Ireland has been growing since the part government-owned British bank announced plans to restructure its costs in Ireland this year. In January, RBS announced it was to merge First Active with Ulster Bank, with the loss of 750 jobs. Since then it has insisted Ulster Bank is a “core asset” of the group.

In a statement yesterday, the company said the job losses were due to a restructuring of the business.

Lombard will now provide asset finance directly to the Irish market on a business-to-business basis and will no longer deal through broker and intermediary networks. To date, Lombard has been offering finance to businesses through point-of-sale intermediaries such as car garages. It is understood this service will no longer be available to customers.

Patricia Callan of the Small Firms Association said Lombard’s announcement meant less competition in the market and less choice for small business owners.