The country has produced industrial titans and dealmakers. The Collisons have taken a different route, embedding Stripe at the heart of global commerce and thinking in decades, not quarters.
Frustration about housing and infrastructure has led to confusion between private interests, environmental obligations, and the processes at play to balance them against the public good.
In a wide-ranging interview, the Stripe co-founder talks about resisting the IPO rush, the returns of long-term vision, and why Ireland’s economic future depends on rediscovering strategic ambition.
Billionaire businessman John Collison isn’t just investing in infrastructure—he’s reshaping Weston Airport into a hub for light aviation, pilot training, and public service flights. For Collison, it is not just business, it is personal.
In late 2022, Laois County Council opened an enforcement case over a grass runway used by the aviation enthusiast at his estate and an unauthorised parking area beside it. The file was recently closed off.
This week, to celebrate our fifth birthday, we published a string of major interviews, features, and investigations. When you weave them together, they showcase the type of journalism we aspire to produce, but they also help tell a wider story.
John Collison says that Ireland’s economic success was founded on radical ideas. However, in a wide-ranging and forthright interview, the co-founder of Stripe wonders if complacency has seeped into the system.
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