AN POST CONTROLS more than 10 per cent of the savings market in Ireland following the financial crisis, new figures indicate.

The Irish Independent reports that the state-owned mail operator and bank benefited from the unprecedented movement of deposits from the country’s traditional banks during the economic crisis with its market share rising from 6.2 per cent to 10.3 per cent.

The figures came to light in a Freedom of Information request of An Post’s submission to the review of semi-state assets by Colm McCarthy.

The paper reports that An Post took more than €2.3 billion in savings by October of 2010. In 2008 and 2009, a total of €3.2 billion was lodged making a total of €5.5 billion since the financial crisis.

The McCarthy report recommended that An Post not be considered for a sell off by the state in the near term but warned that it faced a challenging environment in the years to come due to a “decline in its core business, the prospective impact of full postal liberalisation and a continuing relatively high cost base.”

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