A US private equity fund led by former French president Nicolas Sarkozy’s half-brother has hired a UK advisory firm to explore a sale of AA Ireland, the roadside assistance and insurance intermediary company it bought in late 2020, the Sunday Times reported.
New York-based Further Global Capital Management, founded by banker Olivier Sarkozy in 2017, bought AA Ireland for about €256 million in a deal that marked the exit at the time of Carlyle Cardinal Ireland Fund and Carlyle Global Financial Services Partners as owners.
Further Global has hired Continuum Advisory Partners, which specialises in financial services and insurance, to look into the possibility of a sale of AA Ireland, according to the report. It comes as Further Global agreed a refinancing of AA Ireland with Barings Asset management this month.
Olivier Sarkozy, the former head of Carlyle Group’s financial services unit, is best known in Dublin financial circles for being involved in that group’s part in a group of private equity firms – known as the Mallabraca consortium – that had been looking at taking a major stake in Bank of Ireland in 2008, at the start of the financial crisis.
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Government to kill talk off Dublin tourist tax
The Government is set to kill any talk of an introduction of a special tax being imposed on tourists, after strong lobbying from the sector, according to the Business Post.
Dublin’s four local authorities have announced plans for the development of a tax on hotel rooms in Dublin, with suggestions it could be in place by September. They have planned a united front for legislation that would clear the way for tourists to be charged an extra fee as part of their bill.
However, the Business Post reported that Fine Gael Ministers, in particular, have come out against such a tax, which would have to underpinned by legislation, which would have to come from Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe’s department. The Irish Tourism Industry Federation that visitors to Ireland spend more than €6 billion annually in the State.
Ministers told to stick to script on tariffs
Cabinet Ministers have been given talking points on tariffs to make sure that they stick to a clear script to avoid any confusion at a time of heightened trade tensions, according to the Sunday Independent.
The report said that the Government is keen to make sure that the Cabinet speaks with one voice, and brought up an infamous episode from late 2010 with Fianna Fáil ministers dismissed reports that the State was in bailout talks only for the then Central Bank of Ireland governor Patrick Honohan to take to radio to effectively confirm that it was in such negotiations.
It comes as Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe appeared to indicate support for the EU threatening US tech giants with taxes on ad revenues in a Bloomberg interview last week – only for him to say the following day to the Sunday Independent that he would not support a digital tax. The latter comments followed Taoiseach Micheál Martin clarifying that the Republic would resist such a tax.
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said earlier this month that the EU was ready to dramatically expand the transatlantic trade war to services if trade talks to with US, potentially including a tax on digital advertising revenues that would hit tech groups such as the parents of Facebook and Google.
Irish logistics company makes UK acquisition
Primeline Group, an Irish logistics company based in Ashbourne, Co Meath, has acquired British freight transport firm Avon Freight to expand its business in the UK, the Sunday Independent reported.
Avon, based in Redditch, Worcestershire, has more than 40 years of experience in warehousing and customs services between the UK and Ireland. The business is led by managing director Dawn Greene, who will continue to lead Avon Freight following the acquisition, which is reportedly worth a seven-figure sum.
Tim Cummins, chief executive officer of Primeline Group, said the deal was an important part of the company’s growth strategy.
