Most Irish people prefer a traditional bank to a digital alternative, a survey has found. 

The State of Irish Banking report from Wise found 51% of Irish people have most confidence in a traditional bank when it comes to “handling my money fairly”, with only 15% picking Wise or Revolut.

There was also widespread satisfaction on whether Irish banks offer “adequate” digital banking services; 42% agreed they do and a further 16% strongly agreed that they do.

Wise’s Roisin Levine said the research underscored how much banking is changing in Ireland.

“Ireland is an unusually ‘techy’ country, a number of major tech companies having large offices in Ireland and the population as a whole is very open to tech,” she said.

“This is reflected in how Ireland banks; a staggering 72% of Irish people now use an ‘app-based provider’, such as Wise or Revolut, for banking services.

“These services, which tend to be priced keenly and provide efficient services, are breathing fresh life into the Irish banking sector and empowering people with choice.”

Ms Levine said the survey still suggests overall that “few things are as central to life as our bank account” in Ireland.

Main image: A customer withdraws money from an ATM.