The claim by Declan Ganley, asserting that a roughly $20 million (around €18.4 million) debt default judgment had been met through the surrender of his company Rivada Networks’ shares, has been dismissed by a New York judge. According to an update from Barry J Whyte, New York supreme court judge Jennifer Schecter stated within this week’s ruling that there wasn’t “any definitive proof” backing Mr Ganley’s statement that the debt was settled by “the auction of the 20,000 Rivada shares” in October 2023.
Barclays, the UK’s banking titan, saw an almost 8% increase in the assets of its European Union base in Dublin, totalling €143 billion, as the possibility of relocating the headquarters to Paris is still being considered. This was reported by Joe Brennan.
In an analysis of Leo Varadkar’s impact on the economy during his time as Taoiseach, Eoin Burke-Kennedy highlights that the results are a combination of successes and failures.
Joe Brennan additionally reported that the hostel-booking group known as Hostelworld, particularly popular among Gen-Z and millennial backpackers, will be paying back €9.6 million in deferred taxes accumulated during the Covid-19 pandemic. They aim to achieve this within a three-year span, as revealed by their annual report.
Due to authorities turning down an agreement which may have made 6,200 parking spaces accessible again, holidaymakers might face challenges in finding parking at Dublin Airport this summer. The spaces have been unused since the pandemic began. This story was covered by Barry O’Halloran.
John FitzGerald in his column deliberates on why socio-economic status still carries weight in spite of recent progress in overall health and life expectancy. In summary, he emphatically states the need for poverty reduction to further enhance public health.
Kevin O’Sullivan discusses in his Business This Week piece how the West Coast of Ireland’s wind farm construction flurry has led to a growth spurt in rural Galway’s development.
In the week’s main interview, Dermot Smurfit Jnr recalled how his role at his previous company GAN ended. He further shared with Barry J Whyte his plans for the future.
When Irish banking executives reflect on their previous co-workers who have moved abroad, it arouses curiosity. Mark Byrne, the erstwhile CFO of AIB, and the former head of Bank of Ireland, Francesca McDonagh, have both managed to secure significant remuneration in Portugal and Germany post their departure from Ireland. David Duffy, another former head of AIB, could potentially be the next to experience a noteworthy compensation in millions of euros, following the proposed acquisition of Virgin Money UK, of which he is CEO, by Nationwide Building Society.
There are also reports that Barry claims approximately 1,600 jobs in the restaurant sector have been shed owing to government regulations, namely revisions in minimum wage, VAT, and national insurance.