Irish banks the worst in Europe for savers

Italian bank shares briefly tanked last week after the government’s windfall levy on the sector, prompting Giorgia Meloni’s administration to quickly backtrack on the measure. Still, Italy’s government is not the only one frustrated by banks not passing on rate increases to savers, with Spain, Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Lithuania making similar moves over the last year.

Unfortunately for domestic savers, Irish banks are the worst in Europe in this regard, having passed on just 7 per cent of rate increases to savers. This compares to 43 per cent in the UK and 35 per cent in France.

[ Banks need to pass on rate hikes to savers as well as borrowers ]

Stocks present one alternative to near-zero rates. Alternatively, frustrated depositors may be tempted to log on to Raisin.ie, a pan-European banking platform that allows savers to earn up to 4 per cent annually.