Author: Practicenet

Ulster Bank’s operating profit in Ireland fell by €338m last year as a result of costs paid to thousands of its customers affected by the tracker mortgage scandal. The bank posted a profit of just €24m for last year due to an increase in lititgation costs of €229m. The bank also suffred a €56m loss […]

The impact of Brexit on the Irish economy is likely to be “negative and material,” the Central Bank deputy governor has said, as she revealed it is monitoring the effects on Irish banks with UK arms. New data yesterday showed that the UK economy sped up at the end of 2016. But over the whole […]

AIB is closing half of its bank branches in Northern Ireland Ireland as part of a dramatic shake-up. A total of 15 of its 30 branches are to shut down in the next six months. No further closures are planned in the Republic. It is likely the closures will generate criticism in the North, where […]

TAX officials have sent letters to 500,000 taxpayers warning them that they are running out of time to tell Revenue if they have foreign earnings that they have failed to declare. The warning also relates to a bank account abroad or a pension from outside the state that they are not paying tax on. It […]

All our economies will suffer if we fail to counter the protectionist argument espoused by radical nationalists, one of Europe’s top officials has warned. European Commission first vice-president Frans Timmermans said that if the argument could be made that free trade was a driving force for an economy, there “will be a change of heart […]

Three former staff members of RSA Insurance Ireland (RSAII) have been sanctioned and fined by a UK watchdog. The former Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and two former actuaries admitted misconduct following an Financial Reporting Council’s (FRC) investigation into financial irregularities at the firm. Rory O’Connor, former CFO, was dismissed by RSA in early 2014 for […]

The rate of rise in motor insurance costs and rents eased off last month. New figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show that motor premiums did not rise in the month of January. But the cost of cover was up 6.4pc when compared with the same month last year. However, this is way down […]

More than half of Irish businesses believe that Brexit will have no effect on their business, according to a new report. Fifty-one per cent of respondents to a survey conducted by accountancy firm HLB Sheehan Quinn believe that Britain’s decision to leave the EU will not adversely affect their business. Under a third (27pc) predicted […]

The value of the State’s holding in AIB was €11.3bn at the end of December – down €900m since the previous year. The Government owns more than 99pc of AIB after pumping around €21bn into the bank to save it from collapse after the financial crisis. The Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) also valued the […]

European stocks edged higher yesterday, with gains in miners and telecommunications firms tempered by a slide in Unilever. By the close in Dublin, the ISEQ Overall Index was up 0.14pc or 8.86 points, to end the trading session at 6,549.09. The leaders on the Dublin market included packaging giant Smurfit Kappa, which increased 0.8pc to […]