News

The SME sector is set for a €75m cash injection via a State lender, the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI). The SBCI was set up to ensure favourable loan rates reached SMEs, by funnelling State-sourced money through banks and other lenders, who could then pass on the benefits. The €75m package is going to […]

Irish households are set to spend €1bn on groceries this December for the first time. Market researcher Kantar Worldpanel said Christmas day falling on a Tuesday will give retailers a festive bonus. “As the 25 December fell on a Monday last year, Friday and Saturday were the two biggest trading days for the major grocers. […]

Just how tough the present day has become for print US newspapers was underlined by some new research on news consumption in that market. According to the Pew Research Centre, social media platforms have now overtaken print newspapers as a news source for Americans – 20pc of US adults say they often get news via […]

The Government has launched an initiative to help returning emigrants start and develop businesses in Ireland. The ‘Back for Business’ entrepreneur mentoring programme, which is being funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, runs over six months. It is designed for recently returned emigrants who have lived abroad for at least a year […]

It’s hard to imagine but there was a time when conversations around trade and business did not include references, pointed or otherwise, to Brexit. Its impact on how we conduct business cannot be underestimated. And if ever Irish businesses needed to consider the value of diversifying their market strategy then that time, quite frankly, is […]

Digital startup investor NDRC, which is funded by the State, has warned that Irish companies are struggling to get early-stage investment and that the response from Government is “inadequate”. In a submission to the Department of Finance, NDRC also said there had been a number of worrying developments as funding available for early-seed investment shrinks. […]

Although the main banks have stepped up preparations for a potential no-deal Brexit, UK-based payment firms used by EU customers are not ready, the bloc’s banking watchdog said on Friday. Britain’s parliament is deadlocked over whether to approve or reject a divorce settlement with the EU ahead of the country’s planned departure from the bloc […]

HUNDREDS of homeowners have been left without insurance cover if their homes develop structural defects following the failure of a Danish insurer. Alpha Insurance filed for bankruptcy earlier this year. It had 12,000 customers here. Last week 50,000 drivers had to get alternative insurance cover when another Danish insurer, Qudos, went into liquidation. Now it […]

THE Government plans to borrow between €14bn and €18bn next year, to repay outstanding debt as it falls due. The plans outlined by the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) are in line with the amount raised this year on the bond markets. The Government is forecasting a balanced budget next year, meaning it will not […]

More than 1,300 disclosures made of assets held in the UK. The Revenue Commissioners took a €213m tax haul last year as a result of a crackdown on defaulters that was backed by the recruitment of extra staff. And €87.6m of the tax was paid by people on assets held across the world, including the […]