Trustee Savings Banks Act , 1989

PART I Preliminary and General

1 Short title.

1.—This Act may be cited as the Trustee Savings Banks Act, 1989.

2 Commencement.

2.—This Act shall come into operation on such day or days as, by order or orders made by the Minister under this section, may be fixed therefor either generally or with reference to any particular purpose or provision and different days may be so fixed for different purposes and different provisions.

3 Interpretation.

3.—(1) In this Act, save where the context otherwise requires—

“the Act of 1963” means the Companies Act, 1963;

“the Acts” means the Trustee Savings Banks Acts, 1863 to 1979;

“the Central Bank” means the Central Bank of Ireland;

“company”, “equity share capital”, “holding company” and “subsidiary” have the meanings assigned to them by the Act of 1963;

“the Companies Acts” means the Act of 1963 and every Act which is to be construed with it as one Act;

“the Court” means the High Court;

“deposit” includes a deposit in a current account;

“depositor” means a person who maintains a deposit with a trustee savings bank and cognate words shall be construed accordingly;

“former bank” means a trustee savings bank that immediately before the commencement of Part II stood certified under the Acts;

“licence” has the meaning assigned to it by section 10;

“the Minister” means the Minister for Finance;

“the special account” has the meaning assigned to it by section 32;

“trustee savings bank” has the meaning assigned to it by section 9.

(2) In this Act—

(a) a reference to any enactment shall, unless the context otherwise requires, be construed as a reference to that enactment as amended, adapted or extended by or under any subsequent enactment including this Act or regulations made under this Act,

(b) a reference to a Part, section or schedule is a reference to a Part, section of, or schedule to, this Act unless it is indicated that reference to some other enactment is intended,

(c) a reference to a subsection, paragraph or subparagraph is a reference to the subsection, paragraph or subparagraph of the provision in which the reference occurs unless it is indicated that reference to some other provision is intended,

(d) a reference to any provision of this Act shall, where appropriate, be construed as a reference to that provision as modified by regulations.

4 Regulations and directions.

4.—(1) Without prejudice to any specific provision of this Act, any regulations thereunder may contain such incidental, consequential, transitional or supplementary provisions (including provisions for the purpose of effecting the transition from the enactments repealed by section 7 of this Act) as may appear to the Minister to be necessary or proper for any purpose of this Act or in consequence of, or to give full effect to, any provision of this Act.

(2) Every regulation made under this Act shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it is made and, if a resolution annulling the regulation is passed by either such House within the next 21 days on which that House has sat after the regulation is laid before it, the regulation shall be annulled accordingly, but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder.

(3) (a) The Central Bank may give a direction to a trustee savings bank in relation to any matter (other than a matter in relation to which a direction may be given by the Central Bank to a trustee savings bank under any other provision of this Act) connected with the business carried on by the bank or where it considers it necessary to do so in the interest of the orderly and proper regulation of trustee savings banks.

(b) A person who fails or refuses to comply with a direction under this subsection shall be guilty of an offence.

(4) (a) A direction by the Central Bank under this Act shall be given in writing by an officer of the Central Bank duly authorised for that purpose.

(b) The provisions of subsection (1) shall, subject to any necessary modifications, apply to such a direction as they apply to regulations.

(c) Such a direction may be given to a trustee savings bank by sending it by ordinary prepaid post to the secretary or other like officer of the bank addressed to him at the chief office of the bank.

(d) The Central Bank may by a direction under this paragraph amend or revoke a direction given by it under this Act including this paragraph.

5 Regulations to remove difficulties.

5.—If, in any respect, any difficulty arises in bringing any provision of this Act into operation or in relation to the operation of any such provision, the Minister may by regulations do anything which appears to him to be necessary or expedient for removing that difficulty, for bringing that provision into operation, or for securing or facilitating its operation, and any such regulations may modify any provision of this Act so far as may be necessary or expedient for carrying such provision into effect for the purposes aforesaid but no regulations shall be made under this section in relation to any provision of this Act after the expiration of 3 years commencing on the day on which the relevant provision of this Act came into operation.

6 Modification of Act to conform with changes in company, banking and building society law.

6.—(1) If, on any modification of the enactments in force relating to companies, banks or building societies, it appears to the Minister to be expedient to modify the provisions of this Act for the purpose of assimilating the law relating to trustee savings banks to the modifications of the law relating to companies, banks or building societies, the Minister may by regulations make such modification of any provisions of this Act as he thinks appropriate for that purpose.

(2) The power conferred by subsection (1) includes power to modify the relevant provisions of this Act so as to—

(a) confer power to make orders, regulations or other instruments,

(b) provide for the charging of fees but not for the making of any charge in the nature of taxation.

(3) Regulations under this section may—

(a) make consequential amendments to or repeals of other provisions of this Act,

(b) make such transitional or saving provisions as appear to the Minister to be necessary or expedient.

(4) In this section “modification” includes any addition and, as regards modifications of the enactments relating to companies, banks or building societies, any modification whether effected by any future Act or by an instrument made after the passing of this Act under an Act whenever passed.

7 Repeals and savings.

7.—(1) The enactments specified in column (2) of the First Schedule are hereby repealed to the extent specified in column (3) of that Schedule.

(2) In so far as any instrument made or other thing whatsoever done under any provision repealed by this Act could have been made or done under a corresponding provision of this Act, it shall not be invalidated by the repeal of that provision but, if in force immediately before that provision was repealed, shall have effect as if made or done under the corresponding provision of this Act.

(3) A reference in any statute or instrument made under statute or in any book, record or other document to a former bank shall be construed as a reference to a trustee savings bank.

8 Expenses.

8.—(1) The expenses incurred by the Minister in the administration of this Act shall be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

(2) The expenses incurred by the Central Bank in the administration of this Act shall be paid out of the general fund of the Central Bank.

PART II Establishment and Licensing of Trustee Savings Banks

9 “Trustee savings bank”.

9.—(1) In this Act “trustee savings bank” means a society formed for the purpose of establishing and maintaining an institution in the nature of a bank conforming to the provisions of this Act—

(a) whose business is managed and administered under the supervision of trustees in accordance with those provisions, and

(b) that carries on, in pursuance of a licence and in accordance with those provisions and rules made by its trustees and subject to the general supervision of the Central Bank, any one or more of the following:

(i) the business of accepting deposits payable on demand or on notice or at a fixed or determinable future date,

(ii) the business normally carried on by a former bank,

(iii) the business of providing, with the consent of the Central Bank, any other financial service.

(2) A trustee savings bank may, with the consent of the Central Bank, carry on business outside the State.

(3) In the exercise of any of its functions under this Act the Central Bank shall not be required to treat assets or liabilities of trustee savings banks outside the State as if they were held in the State.

10 Licences.

10.—(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, the Central Bank may, on application to it in that behalf by the trustees of the society concerned, grant or refuse to grant to them a licence authorising them to establish, maintain, and carry on the business of, a trustee savings bank (in this Act referred to as “a licence”).

(2) The Central Bank shall not refuse to grant a licence without the consent of the Minister and unless it is satisfied that the grant of the licence would not be in the interest of the orderly and proper regulation of trustee savings banks or that there is not compliance with this Act as respects the institution, or the trustees, concerned and the Minister shall not grant his consent to the refusal unless he is satisfied that the grant of the licence would not be in the interest of the orderly and proper regulation of trustee savings banks or that there is not compliance with this Act as respects the institution, or the trustees, concerned.

(3) Whenever the Central Bank proposes to refuse to grant a licence to the trustees of a society—

(a) it shall notify them in writing of its intention to seek the consent of the Minister to the refusal and of its reasons for the refusal and that they may, within 21 days of the giving of the notification, make representations in writing to the Minister in relation to the proposed refusal,

(b) the trustees may make such representations to the Minister within the time aforesaid, and

(c) the Minister shall, before deciding whether to give or withhold his consent to the proposed refusal, consider any representations duly made to him under this subsection.

(4) (a) Subject to paragraph (b) of this subsection, the Central Bank shall, not later than 6 months after the receipt of an application therefor, either grant the licence or give a notification under subsection (3) (a) to the persons who made the application.

(b) Paragraph (a) shall have effect in relation to a case where, pursuant to subsection (6), the Central Bank requests the persons concerned to furnish information in relation to an application for a licence as if the reference to the receipt of an application were a reference to the furnishing of the information.

(5) An application for a licence shall be in such form and contain information in relation to such matters as the Central Bank may specify.

(6) The Central Bank may, following the receipt by it of an application for a licence, request the persons concerned in writing to furnish information to it in relation to specified matters and the persons shall comply with the request.

(7) Where, immediately before the commencement of this section, a former bank was carrying on business, the Central Bank shall, upon application therefor by its trustees, grant to them, as soon as may be thereafter, a licence in respect of its business and the licence shall have, and be deemed to have had, effect as on and from such commencement.

(8) The grant of a licence shall not constitute a warranty as to the solvency of the institution concerned and the Central Bank shall not be liable in respect of any losses incurred through the insolvency or default of a person to whom a licence is granted or the trustee savings bank in respect of which it is granted.

(9) The Central Bank may amend a licence by inserting therein or deleting therefrom, as appropriate, the names of trustees of the trustee savings bank concerned.

11 Prohibition on carrying on of business of a trustee savings bank without a licence.

11.—(1) A person, other than a person authorised so to do by a licence, shall not, on his own behalf or on behalf of any other person in or outside the State, carry on the business of a trustee savings bank or hold himself out or represent himself as carrying on such a business.

(2) For the purposes of this section, a person shall be deemed to hold himself out as carrying on the business of a trustee savings bank if he does an act specified in section 14 (2).

(3) A person who contravenes this section shall be guilty of an offence.

12 Conditions of licences.

12.—(1) Subject to subsection (2), a licence shall be subject to such conditions, if any, as the Central Bank may impose and specify at the time of the grant thereof, being conditions that in the opinion of the Bank are calculated to promote the proper and orderly regulation of trustee savings banks.

(2) The conditions of a licence may be amended, revoked or added to, and conditions may be imposed in relation to a licence, from time to time by the Central Bank if, in the opinion of the Central Bank, the amendment, revocation, addition or imposition is calculated to promote the orderly and proper regulation of trustee savings banks.

(3) Whenever the Central Bank proposes to impose a condition in relation to a licence or to amend or add to the conditions of a licence—

(a) it shall notify in writing the persons who hold the licence or to whom the licence is intended to be granted of its intention to impose the condition or to amend or add to the conditions of the licence, as the case may be, and of its reasons for so doing and that they may, within 21 days of the giving of the notification, make representations in writing to the Central Bank in relation to the imposition, amendment or addition, as the case may be,

(b) the persons may make such representations to the Central Bank within the times aforesaid,

(c) the Central Bank shall, before deciding to impose the condition or amend or add to the conditions of the licence, consider any representations duly made to it under this subsection, and

(d) if any representations are duly made to the Central Bank under this subsection, it may, upon the expiration of the period of 21 days aforesaid, withdraw the proposal aforesaid or impose such a condition or effect such amendments of or additions to the conditions of the licence as, having regard to the representations, the Central Bank considers appropriate subject only to the proviso that the action taken by the Central Bank shall not be such as to render compliance with the conditions of the licence more onerous than it would have been if the conditions of the licence had been those contained in the licence at the time of the giving of the notification under paragraph (a) as amended or added to or otherwise affected in accordance with the notification.

(4) A person who fails or refuses to comply with a condition of a licence shall be guilty of an offence.

13 Revocation of licences.

13.—(1) The Central Bank may, with the consent of the Minister, revoke a licence—

(a) if the holders of the licence so request,

(b) if the institution concerned has not commenced to carry on the business authorised by the licence within 12 months of the date on which the licence was granted,

(c) if the trustee savings bank concerned is being wound up,

(d) if the trustee savings bank becomes unable to meet its obligations to its creditors or suspends payments lawfully due by it or, in the opinion of the Central Bank—

(i) no longer possesses funds that are sufficient for the purposes of the business aforesaid, or

(ii) can no longer be relied upon to fulfil its obligations to its creditors, including the repayment of deposits held by it and the payment of interest thereon,

(e) if the trustee savings bank is convicted on indictment of an offence under this Act or is convicted of an offence involving fraud or dishonesty,

(f) if, since the grant of the licence, the circumstances relevant to the grant have changed and are such that, if an application for the grant of a licence were made in the changed circumstances, the grant thereof would be refused,

(g) if the Central Bank is not satisfied that the circumstances of the trustee savings bank are such that the bank is capable of repaying deposits accepted by it and paying any interest due to the depositors thereon in accordance with the terms of the deposits,

(h) if the trustees or the trustee savings bank fail to comply with a direction of the Central Bank under this Act,

(i) if there is not compliance with this Act as respects the trustees or the trustee savings bank, or

(j) if the trustee savings bank has ceased to carry on the business authorised by the licence and has not carried it on during a period of more than 6 months immediately following the cesser.

(2) Whenever the Central Bank proposes to revoke a licence (other than in pursuance of a request by the holders thereof to do so)—

(a) it shall notify the holders in writing that it intends to seek the consent of the Minister to the revocation and of the reasons therefor and that the holders may, within 21 days after the date of the giving of the notification, make representations in writing to the Minister in relation to the proposed revocation,

(b) the holder may make such representations as aforesaid to the Minister within the time aforesaid, and

(c) the Minister shall, before deciding to grant or withhold his consent to the revocation, consider any representations duly made to him under this subsection.

(3) Where a licence is revoked and the trustee savings bank concerned is not wound up—

(a) the bank shall continue to be liable in respect of deposits accepted by it until any liabilities in respect of them have been discharged to the satisfaction of the Central Bank,

(b) upon the discharge of the liabilities aforesaid, the bank shall be closed in accordance with section 42, and

(c) the trustees of the bank shall discharge all their liabilities to their depositors in full and without undue delay and shall notify the Central Bank and the depositors with the bank, in such manner and within such time as may be determined by the Central Bank, of the action they are taking to do so.