Top Stories

Private provision – Part 2: The offshore links of firms paid €1.2bn for refugee accommodation

From billionaire trusts to ownership dead-ends, The Currency examined the corporate structures of private providers with offshore links.

Cannabis, beer, and wellness: Meet Tilray Brands, Ireland’s newest publican

On Monday, the US lifestyle and pharmaceutical firm spent £33m buying up assets tied to troubled craft brewer BrewDog. Its Dublin outpost, which employs over 50 people, is among them.

Jack Dorsey’s latest far-out bet: An AI future with fewer employees

Block—owner of payment apps, bitcoin and music streaming—grew its workforce to nearly 13,000 during the pandemic, writes Angel Au-Yeung, The Wall Street Journal.

Private provision – Part 1: €2bn on refugee accommodation paid to just 15 groups

The Currency examined 32,000 payments worth €6.3bn paid to more than 800 recipients since 2020 to piece together the key groups active in the private refugee accommodation sector.

“Cracked”: An aircraft engine stuck in Ireland and a quarrel between two lessors

Engine lessor Willis Lease is suing Chinese aircraft lessor CALC, through its Irish entities, over an engine that it says has been poorly maintained and not returned.

Petrol

Attacks in Qatar, Saudi Arabia drag energy sector into Mideast conflict

Qatar halts LNG production and tanker traffic comes to virtual stop at key waterway, as Iranian attacks raise risks for global economy, write Summer Said, Georgi Kantchev and Benoit Faucon, The Wall Street Journal.

Firm linked to developer Greg Kavanagh sued over €1.8m share deal

The company is being sued for specific performance of a share-purchase deal linked to a residential development site at Longwood Village in Co Meath.

They built the hottest firm on Wall Street. Now they have to save it.

Doug Ostrover and Marc Lipschultz made Blue Owl a private-credit behemoth with bets on software, AI and individual investors. It is starting to show cracks, write Gregory Zuckerman, Matt Wirz and Peter Rudegeair, The Wall Street Journal.

Top Voices

A new state savings scheme won’t fix Ireland’s broken savings system

If we are serious about building long-term financial resilience for households – and reducing long-term pressure on the State – this is the moment to step back and design a joined-up savings and investment framework that will still make sense in 20 or 30 years’ time.

From “allocating funding” to a “development mindset”: A bid to make science work for the country

Under new CEO Diarmuid O'Brien, Research Ireland's inaugural strategy aims to transform the country's innovation output. Can thousands of new PhDs and a more entrepreneurial approach answer Mario Draghi's critique of European competitiveness?

The worst of both worlds? Resetting rents in a market with no slack

Ireland’s experience over the past decade shows that rental crises cannot be managed indefinitely through emergency measures. Controls introduced as temporary responses tend to become permanent, and permanent systems need to be designed for the long haul.

Joe Gill: Iran war explains why airline shares trade lower than other companies’

In a business exposed to pandemics and geopolitical threats, the risk of taking on debt is higher for airlines. This has consequences for their shareholders, whether they are governments or stock-market investors.

Lessons from Frank: Back to school in Barcelona

A week at IESE Business School on Enterprise Ireland’s Leading Edge programme challenged 20 Irish business leaders to rethink strategy, leadership – and what we do about loyal employees like Frank Nash.

How Irish folk musicians put me back on my feet: Rewinding the week that was

The open mind and sheer energy of the current Irish music scene would do you good. It is tapping into a solid tradition without falling into the trap of fake purity.

What is amateurism and what is austerity? The GAA is in danger of confusing one for the other

With revenues rising and standards at an elite level, the GAA must decide how to protect amateurism without suppressing ambition.

Brett Igoe: The last dance can’t be Twickenham — Ireland must kick on

Twickenham answered lots of questions about this team, and the reaction of the coaching staff showed it. It was Ireland's recalibration. Now comes the test of whether they can sustain it.