The big announcement on Thursday was the merger of Grant Thornton Ireland and Grant Thornton US. The American entity is the biggest, but the Irish firm is fifth-largest part of the global network, generating about €300 million of revenues last year. The deal is backed by New York private equity firm New Mountain Capital. Joe Brennan looks into what it all means.
Goodbody Stockbrokers plans to reinstate staff bonuses following a return to profit, even if only “modest” ones. Speaking to Joe Brennan, chief executive Martin Tormey talks about the changing nature of the business which has grown by more than a third to 414 employees since AIB acquired it three years ago. And it has returned to profit after racking up more than €22 million of losses over the past two years.
The housing crisis is a business headache almost as much as it is one for regular people looking to buy a home. Many companies have been buying property for staff but Dublin’s exclusive Merrion Hotel has confirmed a delay to its own plans to develop accommodation on site because of high construction prices. There is positive news for the five star hotel though, and Ian Curran looks through its accounts which show an onward post-Covid march.
With Irish drinkers developing a thirst for a pint of the zero-alcohol plain, Guinness brewer Diageo is seizing its opportunity. As Barry O’Halloran reports, it is to invest an additional €30 million in its Dublin production, capitalising on a recent sales rise of 50 per cent, and bidding to bring its unlikely star tipple to 2,000 Irish pubs by Christmas (it’s currently in 1,700).
LinkedIn has been fined €310 million by the Data Protection Commission (DPC) which told it to bring its data processes in line with European law. The Microsoft-owned social media and networking platform was reprimanded over the legal basis it relied upon to process its members’ data for advertising. As reported by Ian Curran, it is the fifth-largest fine the Irish regulatory body has issued under GDPR rules.
Following on from the pilots’ industrial action and subsequent pay deal last summer, Aer Lingus ground and cabin crew are to push for a 4 per cent pay increase early next year. Barry O’Halloran explains that although they reached a deal for a 12.25 per cent increase last year, that agreement allowed them re-enter talks should any other group of workers do better.
Mortgage drawdowns continued to grow in the third quarter of this year, if at a slower rate. Laura Slattery looks at the latest Banking & Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI) update which shows activity falling by 1.4 per cent year-on-year. A total of 11,774 new mortgages, valued at €3.4 billion, were drawn down in the period.
Less than two weeks from the US election and little attention is being paid to actual policy. However, in his column, John FitzGerald takes issue with the would-be economics of a Trump presidency, and its promises of import tariffs and the probable trade war it would spark. The data doesn’t lie and he explains a lot of it, including why Mexican workers might just benefit at the expense of their US counterparts.
The Russian military is “cannibalising” chips from washing machines to support its war effort in Ukraine, according to Mark Gitenstein, the US ambassador to the EU, and one of a number of luminaries addressing the US-Ireland economic summit. That washing machine claim was made in the context of sanctions, and what precise effect they are having on Russia’s economy (and war-waging). Eoin Burke-Kennedy attended, bringing news from other guests including Taoiseach Simon Harris; Martin Shanahan, head of FDI at Grant Thornton; European Commissioner for financial services Mairead McGuinness; and Shawn Henry, chief security officer at CrowdStrike.
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