PTSB has promoted its chief risk officer, Barry D’Arcy, to the position of chief financial officer.
Mr D’Arcy joined the bank in October 2023, having previously served as chief risks officer at KBC Bank Ireland. He also previously held a number of senior management positions at the former Belgian-owned bank, including head of finance and head of credit and asset and liability management risk.
KBC Bank Ireland returned its banking licence to the Central Bank last April, having sold off most of its assets after being put into winddown three years earlier.
Mr D’Arcy succeeds Nicola O’Brien, who handed in her notice last August to join UK online bank Monzo in a senior role as it seeks to secure an Irish banking licence to access the wider EU market.
“Since joining PTSB in 2023, Barry has demonstrated an innovative commercial mindset, leveraging an extensive track record of senior leadership positions in finance, risk and retail banking,” said PTSB chief executive Eamonn Crowley.
“As CFO, Barry will play a key role in the next phase of the bank’s evolution as we focus on sustainable growth and delivering on our ambition to become Ireland’s best personal and business bank through exceptional customer experiences.”
Mr D’Arcy takes control of the finance function at a time when the bank is on a major cost-cutting drive, having confirmed earlier this month that it will cut about 300 jobs – or 9.3 per cent of its workforce – this year.
PTSB’s costs base is out of kilter with those of its two larger rivals. PTSB’s total income per employee stood at about €219,000 in 2023, according to calculations based on the bank’s average staff numbers. Bank of Ireland’s ratio was almost €420,000 and AIB’s nearly €465,000.
The average among western European banks was just shy of €400,000, according to US management consulting firm Kearney.
PTSB is also involved in a big project to reduce the perceived riskiness – or risk-weighting – of its mortgages and the amount of expensive capital that must be held against them. Analysts estimate PTSB could also free up €270 million of expensive capital on its balance sheet as a result of the work, subject to regulatory approval.
