patrick honohan : financial sector developments and architecture in ireland – a constantly changing landscape address by mr patrick honohan, governor of the central bank of ireland, at the launch of the book “ bank architecture in dublin – a history to c 1940 ” by dr michael o ’ neill, dublin, 7 february 2012. * * * bank buildings in the 19th and 20th centuries were everywhere designed to project confidence. as michael o ’ neill observes in this delightful book, the grand bank buildings which represent such an important component of victorian dublin were establishments “ built as statements of intent... like churches, they suggest permanence, stability, longevity ”. it is easy of course to make the contrast between the solid designs and structures of the older buildings with the more recent business models of their occupants. we all know which has proven more firm and has stood the test of time better. consider the austere approach of the bank of ireland – the central bank of its day – in its early years in the 1800s. apparently there were problems of punctuality, even among the directors. according to another classic irish book on banking in the past, f. g. hall ’ s 1949 history of that bank ( cited by michael not least for its nice architectural chapter on the parliament house across from us here in foster place ), the directors were fined 1s 1d for being 15 minutes late for a meeting ; the governor was fined 2s 8½d. the fine increased with the degree of lateness. and, in contrast to the trusting ways of latterday bankers, each director was required to deposit 5 guineas in advance from which the fines would be deducted. i wonder how many here can guess why such an odd amount as 2s 8½d? ( almost certainly it reflects the exchange rate of the time : 13 irish pence equalled 12 english pence, so an english half - crown would meet the fine ). it ’ s easy to be nostalgic about the past but in reality, whatever about the buildings they occupied, financial institutions were probably no more popular then than they are now. victorian banks were conservative and mostly profitable. they generally charged more for borrowing in ireland than the british banks, and seem to have upped the spread shortly after independence, just to be on the safe side, i suppose. over time they tended to collect more by way of deposits than they used in lending. the surplus was placed in the london money market. times have changed

factor in industrial location ; inefficient regulation can therefore be as useless as no regulation. now the central bank ’ s almost 1400 staff are a multiple of what can be accommodated in the dame street building, and of course we can ’ t imagine adding floors to the already notoriously over - high building. staff in fact are now scattered across six locations as far apart as spencer dock and the top of harcourt street ( in addition, of course to the currency centre in sandyford ). as you have heard, the central bank is currently looking for a new home in the city. no firm decision has been taken, but it looks as if the clock is ticking for our occupancy of the dame street tower. we won ’ t go suddenly, and we won ’ t board it up. there could be scope to retain some central banking activities here for a number of years, if it takes that long before a suitable purchaser emerges. we have some ideas here and are open to others. bis central bankers ’ speeches a new development on dame street has been the arrival of the occupy movement. while not everyone is happy with their being there, several people have said to me that their presence symbolises, albeit in a rather ambiguous and even incoherent way, the feelings of a large part of society in regard to what has gone wrong in the financial sector and with the banks. we don ’ t welcome their presence, but – as long as no - one is harmed or put in danger by them – we are not at present inclined to take action to have them moved away. all of this serves to remind us that the financial landscape in which we live – and transact – changes all the time. this publication provides us with an insight into the development of a fine architectural tradition. and valuably it chronicles how the evolution of trade and commerce has left its mark through the bank architecture around the city. i would like to congratulate michael and the city council on a fine publication. bis central bankers ’ speeches