Top Stories

Liquidators to Born Clothing identifty €8.7m advanced to “various connected companies”

Liquidators to a company within collapsed women’s and men’s fashion retail chain Born Clothing founded by Joan Lynch and John Curley in 2010 have identified loans to connected parties. This includes €998,000 to Curley.

Behind Vicar Street, a hotel plan becomes mired in dispute

A proposed 50-50 investment between Harry Crosbie and the owners of the Red Cow Inn in a hotel development at the back of Vicar Street never came to pass. Now a dispute between the parties is said to be blocking the sale of the site.

McKillen family-connected company rescues Skellig Chocolates

A McKillen family linked company is investing in an artisan chocolatier in Co Kerry saving 25 jobs.

The mysterious crypto judges who settle Polymarket disputes

Fight over Hezbollah cease-fire highlights unease over the prediction market’s arbitration system, write Alexander Osipovich and Sam Kessler, The Wall Street Journal.

Tommy Kelly on wealth, work, and the risks facing the next generation

The ESW founder reflects on the Irish business leaders who shaped his thinking, the mentor who kept him grounded, and why he believes in adaptability and the importance of getting direct experience with the consumer.

State seeks to rein in spending on child representation legal fees

The new Guardian ad litem national service will appoint lawyers for vulnerable kids from a panel. The newly public rates indicate the State is seeking to reduce legal fees by at least €16 million.

Hilco closes €35.1m refinance deal for six Aidan Brooks properties in London

Among the assets being refinanced are a landmark pub in Spitalfields, Ten Bells made famous by its association with Jack the Ripper.

The messy courtroom drama over AI’s biggest breakup

The legal showdown between Elon Musk and Sam Altman revealed the personal and financial fault lines beneath Silicon Valley’s defining boom,, write Jim Carlton, Keach Hagey and Angel Au-Yeung, The Wall Street Journal.

Top Voices

“This ‘friendraising’ lark is good fun…”: Paul McArdle goes Inside IGTE’s high-impact US tour

A packed schedule of panels, pitches, and partnerships across three cities underlined how relationships – not just deals – are driving Irish-US business growth.

A coffee, an ice hockey game and a €250m vision for Dublin: Rewinding the week that was

Dermot Rigley outlines how a consortium of entrepreneurs, investors and NHL figures came together behind an ambitious plan to create Ireland’s first purpose-built ice hockey arena.

Money for ropey old stories: Keane the caricature seems to enjoy easy cash and public acclaim

He was Manchester United's best paid player for years and is pulling in seven figures as a Sky pundit, so why is Roy Keane so content to keep settling the same old scores, in his on-stage routine with Roddy Doyle?

Dan O’Brien: We’re doing fine. So why is everyone so glum?

Why are voters turning against establishment parties when living standards remain historically high? The latest Eurobarometer poll suggests the answer may lie less in people’s real lives than in the dark mood created by modern media and online discourse.

The more you know about this private-credit fund, the less you understand

A close look at a Blue Owl credit fund’s holdings raises questions about its valuations, writes Jonathan Weil, The Wall Street Journal.

Ian Kehoe: Jack Chambers needs more than a memo to stop the spending creep

Why does a department whose primary remit is to control public expenditure feel it necessary to bring a memo to the cabinet to control public expenditure?

Byron Fry: Reassessing the role of nuclear in Ireland’s energy future

The present crises do not make the case for Irish nuclear power in their own right. What they do is make the case against strategic complacency much harder to defend.

John Looby’s pilgrimage to Omaha, the heart of Middle America

Omaha is a unique experience. The number of investors – seasoned and new, and investment ideas – silly and sensible, packed into such a tight space over such a short time is unmatched.