Irish Nationwide still hiring in wake of €2.5bn loss

Proportionately, Irish Nationwide Building Society's exposure to the commercial property sector is as big as Anglo's. It's also just reported a loss of nearly €2.5bn for 2009. Yet it is still looking to hire.

The firm's gargantuan losses are down to setting aside €2.8bn for loan losses, resulting from a period of reckless lending orchestrated by its previous chief executive, Michael Fingleton.

It set aside €464m in 2008, when it was €242m in the red. In fact, this year's deficit exceeds cumulative profits generated by the bank since its inception.

Clearly, the situation is bad, and the government is expected to step in and inject €2.7bn, which will allow it to cover the capital requirements set out by the Irish financial regulator.

Nonetheless, the society has been steadily recruiting from the end of 2009 and into this year. Vacancies are not exactly voluminous - there are around five roles at both a retail and commercial banking level currently - but any new job creation runs counter to both the situation at its peers and the dire situation within the firm itself.

Recruiters have suggested to us that other domestic Irish banks are hiring for certain positions - largely risk management and compliance - but that this has been done under the radar.

At least Irish Nationwide is being open about its need to recruit. In one way this serves to its advantage; the large number of people looking for work at the moment means, in theory, applications will be plentiful and it will have its pick of the talent.

But concerns over the ongoing viability of the society may deter people from joining.

In one sense, the fact that Danny Kitchen, chairman of Irish Nationwide, has ruled out a merger with EBS Building Society in the near-term is a positive. The move was expected to result in up to 1,000 job losses through branch closures and overlaps after all.

But if the merger is on ice, other more drastic measures may be considered. Chief executive Gerry McGinn has revealed that Irish Nationwide has drafted in experts from KPMG to advise on a EU state-aid restructuring plan.

"We need to look at options including a wind down, a merger, or whether there is a viable business here that can play a part in providing choice in the market," he said.