News

Microsoft ‘saved €127m a year in tax by booking sales through Ireland’

Microsoft has become the latest US multinational to have its tax affairs put under the spotlight, as it reportedly managed to avoid £100m (€127m) a year by booking sales through Ireland. The Washington State-based company, founded by Bill Gates, has allegedly sent more than £8bn of revenues from computers and software that were bought by […]

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Insurance hikes on cards as compo payouts to soar

The first update to guidelines on personal-injury awards in more than a decade is to recommend higher, not lower, payouts. This has raised fears of yet more hikes in motor insurance costs, which have spiralled by more than a third in the past year alone. The guidelines are set to see a 10pc rise in […]

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It’s 2021: Post Brexit Ireland looks like a very different place

Next week marks the fifth anniversary of an event that has already proved to be an inflection point not only in the history of these islands, but in that of our entire continent. The Great Disintegration that has taken place over the past five years is gathering pace. Its most obvious and painful manifestation for […]

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New €60m fund looking to invest in early stage companies from Irish colleges

A new €60m fund, established by one of Europe’s top performing tech funds, will look to invest in early stage companies with global potential that are built from research at all of Ireland’s third-level institutions. Atlantic Bridge, the firm behind the new fund, will look to accelerate the commercialisation of research conducted at Irish colleges. […]

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Brexit will force us to take a stand

The Irish Government needs to be clear and bloody minded on this – if Britain votes to leave the EU, we’ll back their continued access to the single market to the hilt. Yesterday, Michael Noonan was right to break ranks with his long-time German colleague, Wolfgang Schauble, at a meeting of Euro area ministers in […]

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Blanchardstown Centre bought by private equity giant Blackstone

Blackstone has completed a deal to take over the Blanchardstown Centre in one of the biggest property deals in the history of the state. The US private equity giant is believed to have paid Green Property at €950m for the centre. The deal is expected to close this summer pending relevant regulatory approvals. In a […]

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Dealz to open 20 new shops in Ireland but profits plunge at parent Poundland

Discount retailer and owner of Dealz is to open 20 new stores in Ireland in the coming year. Its owner Poundland said that 300,000 Irish customers visit shops every week. The retailer is opening 20 to 30 net new stores “primarily in the Republic of Ireland and in retail parks” – it already has 53 […]

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Brexit already hitting house prices, pound could plunge – stark new warning from BofE

The Bank of England has warned it is “increasingly probable” that Brexit could send the pound plunging. It added that referendum uncertainty is already hitting the housing market as Britons put spending decisions on hold. Policymakers sounded the alarm once more over the impact on the economy of a vote to leave the EU as […]

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Google expands in Ireland, opens new €150m data centre

Google has opened a new €150m data centre in west Dublin bringing its total investment in capital assets in Ireland to over €750m. The tech giant, which employs 3,000 people directly and a further 3,000 indirectly here, has increased its staffing levels by over 20pc in the last 12 months. The new data centre in […]

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Irish banks have contingency in place ahead of Brexit vote, says Central Bank

Banks here are ready for a Brexit, the deputy governor of the Central Bank said. With just over a week to go until the crucial UK vote, Sharon Donnery said disruption and volatility in the financial markets is the chief short-term risk posed by a possible vote by the UK to withdraw from the EU. […]

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