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38 1976

BUILDING SOCIETIES ACT, 1976

PART IV

Ratios and Investments

Control of ratios between assets and liabilities.

37. —(1) The Minister for Finance may, after consultation with the Minister, the Registrar and the Central Bank, require a society to maintain—

(a) a ratio not exceeding a specified ratio, or

(b) a ratio which is not less than a specified ratio,

between its assets and its liabilities, and the specified ratio may be expressed as a percentage of the assets or liabilities concerned.

(2) A requisition under this section may be expressed to apply in relation to—

(a) all societies,

(b) a specified class or classes of societies (denoted by reference to such matters as the Minister for Finance considers appropriate),

(c) total assets or total liabilities, or

(d) a specified class or classes of assets or liabilities (denoted by reference to such matters as the Minister for Finance considers appropriate).

(3) A requisition under this section shall have effect in accordance with its terms and may be varied or revoked by the Minister for Finance, after consultation with the Minister, the Registrar and the Central Bank.

Investment of surplus funds.

38. —(1) The Minister for Finance, after consultation with the Minister and the Central Bank, may prescribe the investments in which a society may invest such portion of its funds as are not immediately required by it for the purpose of the society.

(2) To the extent that a society's surplus funds are not invested in accordance with subsection (1), the society may keep them in cash in the custody of officers of the society or on current account, or on deposit with the Central Bank, a bank, the Post Office Savings Bank, a trustee savings bank certified under the Trustee Savings Banks Acts, 1863 to 1965, the Agricultural Credit Corporation Limited or the Industrial Credit Company Limited.

(3) The Registrar, after consultation with the Minister, the Minister for Finance and the Central Bank, may fix limits (whether by reference to amounts or to a proportion of total investments or otherwise) in respect of investments by a society in securities or in a specified class or classes of securities (denoted by reference to such matters as the Registrar may consider appropriate), and different limits may be fixed for different classes of societies.

(4) The investments which the Minister for Finance may prescribe under subsection (1) may, with the consent of the Central Bank, include Central Bank Reserve Bonds and in such a case society may require, conditioned for rendering a just and true section 48 of the Act of 1971 shall, notwithstanding subsection (3) of that section, apply to a society as if it were a bank.

(5) Where a society's surplus funds stand invested in a manner which was authorised under an enactment repealed by this Act or under subsection (1) but which, apart from this section, has ceased to be so authorised, authority is hereby given to continue to keep the funds invested in that manner.