2023 Report on Protected Disclosures

The Central Bank is a prescribed person for the purpose of receiving protected disclosures under the Protected Disclosures Act 2014. We are also designated to receive protected disclosures under Part 5 of the Central Bank (Supervision and Enforcement) Act 2013.

Protected disclosure reports provide the Central Bank with valuable information that we may not otherwise be aware of. The Central Bank can only act on what we know so any information provided may assist in delivering on our mandate and protecting consumers. The protected disclosures regime plays a unique role in the promotion of high standards within regulated firms, and aids in positively influencing behaviours.

Each protected disclosure received by the Central Bank is robustly assessed and investigated as necessary. See further information regarding what protected disclosures are and the protected disclosures regime.

If you wish to submit a protected disclosure, you can contact our dedicated Team by phone, by post or by email using the below details –

• E-mail: [email protected]
•  Phone: 1800 130 014 : Calls are answered Monday to Friday 9.30am - 5.00pm
• Post: Protected Disclosures Desk, Central Bank of Ireland, PO Box 559, Dublin 1

The Protected Disclosures Act 2014 requires public bodies, such as the Central Bank, to prepare and publish a report by the end of March each year regarding protected disclosures received and managed during the previous calendar year.

For completeness and to ensure transparency, the Central Bank is including protected disclosures received, under both the Protected Disclosures Act 2014 and the Central Bank (Supervision and Enforcement) Act 2013 in its 2023 Report on Protected Disclosures.

During 2023, the Central Bank received a total of 224 protected disclosures. 223 of these protected disclosures were submitted to us directly by reporting persons while one was referred to us by the Protected Disclosures Commissioner.

Many of the protected disclosures, which the Central Bank receives, will contain more than one allegation of wrongdoing. For reference, each individual issue or breach of financial services legislation which is set out in a protected disclosure is treated as a separate allegation.

This is important, as Public bodies must provide a breakdown of the number of allegations investigated, and the outcome of those investigations.

The 224 protected disclosures received by the Central Bank during 2023 contained a total of 294 individual allegations.

All of these 294 allegations related to alleged breaches of financial services while 32 of the allegations also related to alleged criminal offences such as fraud.

Every protected disclosure received, that falls within our remit, is assessed and investigated by the relevant supervisory experts. The assessment process is robust as the protected disclosures help to inform our work and they assist us in identifying actual or potential harm. This could be harm to consumers, to the firms that we regulate and to the wider financial system and economy.

Each protected disclosure is unique and the length of time it takes to investigate each one will depend on a number of factors. Assessment will often form part of our ongoing supervisory work with a firm. In practice, most protected disclosures are assessed in less than one year, but some can take longer than this. As can be seen from the 2023 Report on Protected Disclosures, the median age of protected disclosures closed during 2023 was 43 weeks.

During 2023, investigations were commenced in relation to all of the 294 allegations received during that year.

In addition, at the beginning of 2023, there were also investigations ongoing in relation to 292 allegations, which had been raised in protected disclosures received prior to 1 January 2023.

Of the 294 allegations received by the Central Bank during 2023, thus far 81 contained information that contributed to outcomes including:

• Enhanced supervision
• The publication of warning notices
• The implementation of risk mitigation programmes and
• Enforcement activities.

In addition, of these 81 allegations, 27 were also referred to other agencies such as An Garda Síochána to investigate.

The investigation in to 133 of the 294 allegations received during 2023 remained ongoing on 1 January 2024.

The top three overarching themes associated with investigations in to protected disclosures which were completed during 2023 were:

• Fraud and other criminal offences
• Governance
• Fitness and probity

Not every investigation leads to a supervisory outcome. There are a variety of reasons for this but most often this is because the information in the protected disclosure was inaccurate or there was a lack of evidence to support the issues raised, or the issues raised did not fall within the remit of the Central Bank.

 

Workers can submit anonymous protected disclosures to the Central Bank and such disclosures are still treated as a protected disclosure under the Protected Disclosures Act 2014. 

Of the 224 protected disclosures received during 2023, 21 were submitted by anonymous sources.

These contained a total of 22 allegations. The investigation in to 1 of these allegations has thus far led to an outcome.

The investigation in to 13 of the 22 allegations received from anonymous sources during 2023 remained ongoing on 1 January 2024.

The Central Bank also receives protected disclosures in its role as an employer. In accordance with the Protected Disclosures Act 2014, the Central Bank has a Protected Disclosures policy and confidential procedures in place for its workers to report relevant wrongdoings.

A total of five protected disclosures, containing 6 allegations, were received in 2023 via this internal reporting channel.

The 2023 Report on Protected Disclosures also contains information regarding these protected disclosures.