Impact of Dublin riots reflected in city spending

In-person spending in Dublin city centre almost halves for 2023 Black Friday.

Spending in Dublin City centre fell dramatically on Friday 24 November, and remained significantly impacted on both Saturday 25 and Sunday 26 November according to Bank of Ireland data.

This followed serious public order disturbances in the city centre on the evening of Thursday 23 November.

An analysis of in-person spending on Bank of Ireland debit and credit cards in Dublin 1 and Dublin 2 for Friday 24 November showed spending almost halved compared with the same day – Black Friday – in 2022.

Shock to the city

• In-person card spend on Black Friday (24 Nov) in the city centre (D1 & D2) was down 46% when compared to Black Friday 2022
• In-person card spend on Saturday (25 Nov) in the city centre (D1 & D2) was down 27% when compared to the equivalent Saturday in 2022
• In-person card spend on Sunday (26 Nov) in the city centre (D1 & D2) was also down 27% when compared to the equivalent Sunday 2022

“Our thoughts are with those injured and affected by last Thursday’s appalling events, especially the children and their carer at Parnell Square, the members of An Garda Síochána who worked to protect the city during the night, and communities and businesses in Dublin City,” said Susan Russell, CEO of Bank of Ireland’s Retail Ireland division.

“This violence hurt Dublin. It was bad for everyone who lives, works, studies, visits, and does business in the city.

“We’ve been doing business in Dublin for 240 years, and today we have thousands of customers and colleagues in the city centre. This year we’re especially proud to be part of Dublin City Council’s Dublin Winter Lights initiative.

“This will see our College Green building lighting up spectacularly during December, along with some of the city’s other landmark buildings. Dublin is a great European city, and I hope as many people as possible visit over the coming month,” Russell said.