T: +353 (0)1 224 6000 E: [email protected] www.centralbank.ie Annual Report 2020 and Annual Performance Statement 2020 - 2021 Central Bank of Ireland 1 Contents Overview of the Central Bank………………………………………...2 Part 1: Annual Report 2020…………………………………………..10 Part 2: Annual Performance Statement 2020 – 2021…….81 Glossary……………………………………………………………………………..121 Part 3: Financial Operations………………………………………..125 Who we are, what we do, & how we do it. We are Ireland’s central bank, Our values underpin how we interact with each other and reflect our aspirations, for responsible for maintaining ourselves and for our community: monetary and financial stability and Integrity and care, so that ensuring the financial system works we do what is right, our in the interests of the community. actions match our words and we care about people; We are part of Europe’s monetary and banking unions, and of the world’s network Courage and humility, so of financial regulators. that we act with conviction, are prepared to innovate Protecting people is at the heart of everything and adapt and are always we do. We provide economic analysis, statistics looking to listen and learn; and commentary to inform decisions about what the country needs. We set standards to protect Teamwork and excellence, consumers, and regulate and supervise financial so that we achieve quality service providers and markets, taking outcomes by harnessing enforcement action when we need to. our collective strengths, We are responsible for Ireland’s payment seeking diverse systems and for the provision of its currency. perspectives and driving for disciplined execution. Our vision is to be a central bank that is trusted by the public, respected by its peers and a We believe in the importance of an fulfilling place to work for its people. We work independent central bank that is transparent, with people across Ireland and with colleagues accountable and connected across all public across Europe, and elsewhere in the world, on policy domains, in Ireland, in Europe and the delivery of our mission. across the world. We are passionate and ambitious for the Our constant and predominant aim is Bank’s performance and for the Bank’s people. the welfare of the Irish people as a whole. We act sustainably. We embrace diversity and We are the Central Bank of Ireland. inclusion as they strengthen us, as individuals and as an organisation. We apply rigorous analysis to the best available data. We believe in engagement and in communicating openly, clearly and regularly. Annual Report 2020 and Annual Performance Statement 2020 - 2021 Central Bank of Ireland 3 Annual Report 2020 and Annual Performance Statement 2020 - 2021 Central Bank of Ireland 4 Governor Gabriel Makhlouf Governor’s Foreword This Annual Report and Performance Statement looks at the Central Bank’s activities in 2020, an extraordinary year for Ireland and the rest of the world. The crisis we all faced last year has no precedent in modern history, as Governments chose to “close down” economies in light of the pandemic. It was – and remains – an anxious and uncertain time for people across the country. Protecting citizens has been the priority throughout this pandemic, and protecting people is at the heart of everything we at the Central Bank do. Our mission is to safeguard monetary and financial stability and ensure that the financial system operates in the best interests of consumers and the wider economy. To repeat a phrase I used in last year’s foreword – borrowed from our founding legislation – the Central Bank’s “constant and predominant aim shall be the welfare of the people as a whole”. This report sets out the actions of the Central Bank’s people in response to the crisis as well as our ongoing work to oversee the financial system. Of course we do not operate alone, working closely with our domestic and international partners, including as part of Europe’s monetary and banking unions, to protect consumers, households and businesses. Annual Report 2020 and Annual Performance Statement 2020 - 2021 Central Bank of Ireland 5 Last year was the second of the three years covered by our latest Strategic Plan (2019-2021). Although the pandemic meant the context had changed dramatically since the plan was finalised in 2018, we continued to deliver on our five key themes: strengthening resilience, strengthening consumer protection, enhancing organisational capability, engaging and influencing and Brexit. Inevitably, resilience was a particularly important theme last year with our energy and focus on ensuring the financial system absorbed and did not amplify the COVID-19 induced shock, and was also ready to support the recovery. We worked to understand the macro-financial impacts of the crisis, along with the financial and operational resilience and recovery capacity of regulated firms, funds and markets. We developed a new suite of indicators to help us understand what was going on in the economy. We did this while also managing risks to the financial system during the transition period following the UK’s departure from the EU at the end of January 2020. The Central Bank has a broad mandate and our responsibilities are heavily intertwined. Most of the areas we are responsible for – such as Ireland’s payment systems, providing economic analysis and statistics or the regulation of banks – interact with each other. But the consistent theme through all of them is “the welfare of the people as a whole”. Whether it’s our research or our statutory codes of conduct, redress powers and enforcement actions or whether it’s ensuring price stability, resilient financial institutions and fit-for-purpose macroprudential rules, all are ultimately about protecting people. To do them well, we need to engage with the community as a whole. Good engagement with people and businesses across the country has been a priority of mine since I became Governor. Last year we continued to enhance our engagement with key stakeholders, participating in (mostly virtual) events across the country, listening to a range of views and learning from their different perspectives; like meetings with chambers of commerce throughout the country and discussions with civil society bodies. We launched a consultation earlier this year which aims to build on those experiences through more structured engagement. Like so many organisations, the move to remote working in March 2020 tested our capabilities, culture and resources. I am extremely proud of how our people responded. As an unexpected natural experiment, last year demonstrated the upsides and downsides of regular remote working on a very large scale for an extended period of time. The advantages (of greater flexibility for individuals and the lack Annual Report 2020 and Annual Performance Statement 2020 - 2021 Central Bank of Ireland 6 of a commute) have been obvious; the impact on collaboration, on the sharing of knowledge and on the development of an organisation’s social and intellectual capital – all important determinants of its long- term effectiveness – is less clear. Perhaps what is clearer is that the future at work will be different to the past. In that future, our newly confirmed values – integrity and care, courage and humility, teamwork and excellence – will continue to underpin how we work, reflecting our aspirations for ourselves and for our community. 2021 will be equally challenging and busy. We will continue to work with our colleagues in Europe and beyond to develop and operationalise a more comprehensive macro-prudential framework, including for market-based finance. At the ECB, we will conclude our review to make sure our monetary policy strategy is fit for purpose and also decide on the next steps in the development of a digital euro. Of course, we will play our part in tackling the challenge of climate change, leading by example in our own actions, as well as delivering on our mandate to ensure that the financial system is resilient to climate- related risks, and ready to support the transition to a more sustainable world. Developing our new strategic plan will be a particularly important milestone this year. The challenges ahead – for economies in general and financial systems in particular – are complex. We need to ensure that we learn the lessons of the past as we work to develop the optimal policy and regulatory mix for macroeconomic stabilisation in what will be a different future. Finally, last year saw changes in the membership of the Central Bank Commission. We said farewell to John FitzGerald and Alan Ahearne and welcomed Shay Cody, Sarah Keane and David Miles. I am looking forward to working with them and colleagues throughout the Central Bank to make our vision – trusted by the public, respected by our peers and a fulfilling place to work for our people – a reality. At the Central Bank, we can only deliver our mission through our people. I want to take this opportunity to thank them for their dedication and commitment to serving the public during an extraordinary year. Gabriel Makhlouf Governor 30 April 2021 Annual Report 2020 and Annual Performance Statement 2020 - 2021 Central Bank of Ireland 7 Annual Report 2020 and Annual Performance Statement 2020 - 2021 Central Bank of Ireland 8 The Central Bank Commission Gabriel Makhlouf* Governor of the Central Bank (Chair) Patricia Byron Shay Cody Sharon Donnery* Sarah Keane David Miles Reappointed Appointed Deputy Governor Appointed Appointed Jan 2019 for 5 years Dec 2020 for 5 years Central Banking Dec 2020 for 5 years Dec 2020 for 5 years Niamh Moloney