Glass Bottle site latest, audit firm fined and Irish Times Business Awards

Business Today: the best news, analysis and comment from The Irish Times business desk

Johnny Ronan teamed with US investment company Colony Capital to bid for the development of the former Irish Glass Bottle site in Dublin. Photograph: Bryan O’Brien
Johnny Ronan teamed with US investment company Colony Capital to bid for the development of the former Irish Glass Bottle site in Dublin. Photograph: Bryan O’Brien

Bidders that lost out to developer Johnny Ronan and US investment firm Colony Capital in the race to develop the former Irish Glass Bottle site in Dublin have signalled they remain interested in the project, as the original deadline for concluding a deal passed almost two weeks ago. Joe Brennan has the story.

Also in property, Diageo on Thursday said it had picked Sean Mulryan's property development company Ballymore to develop part of the Guinness Brewery in Dublin as a new urban centre. Peter Hamilton reports.

The Irish accounting regulator has imposed €122,000 of fines and costs on EisnerAmper Audit and two staff members in Dublin for breaching accounting standards in auditing clients' books and "modifying" files ahead of authority inspections. Joe Brennan writes that the sanction is the first imposed by the Irish Auditing & Accounting Supervisory Authority (Iaasa) since it assumed direct responsibility in this area in 2016.

Technology stocks that have powered US equities to record highs this summer went into sharp reverse on Thursday, sending the Nasdaq Composite index tumbling almost 5 per cent in its biggest fall since June. We'll keep an eye on how European markets are affected throughout the day.

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The 2020 Irish Times Business Awards in association with KPMG took place virtually on Thursday, with video of the ceremony available to view here.

The managing director of Ornua's global foods division Róisín Hennerty, who's in charge of Kerrygold, took the coveted Business Person of the Year award, while An Post took Company of the Year.

Decawave won Deal of the Year in light of its acquisition by Qorvo, and Clonmel, Co Tipperary-based Shorla Pharma was named Local Enterprise of the Year.

Chief executive of airline group IAG, Willie Walsh, took home the Distinguished Leader in Business award, telling Business Editor Ciarán Hancock of his hopes that air travel will recover by 2023.

In the same sector, Ryanair announced after stock markets closed on Thursday that it is planning to sell €400 million of shares to strengthen its balance sheet amid the Covid-19 crisis. Joe Brennan has the details on that.

Mark Paul reports that the Government says it wants the four month-old European ban on menthol cigarettes strengthened to stop tobacco companies side-stepping it. The development comes after the the European Commission told member states they have the power to take products off shop shelves.

Former Quinn Insurance Limited (QIL) director Kevin Lunney has reached a settlement with the Central Bank, following an investigation into his alleged involvement in transactions as far back as 2005 that would threaten the insurer's financial standing. Joe Brennan has more.

The owner of Brown Thomas and Arnotts has agreed a voluntary redundancy package with unions, following its recent announcement that it intends to cut 150 job across the business, writes Charlie Taylor.

In his Caveat column, Mark Paul reflects on the often vast human cost of business failure, arguing that it is simply callous to allow pubs to go bust while doing nothing to help.

And in our Agenda feature, on the weekend that should have hosted Electric Picnic, he takes an in-depth look at the live events sector, which has also been decimated by Covid-19 restrictions. Mark writes that the industry estimates itself that it is worth up to €3.5 billion to the economy, employing close to 35,000 people in normal times.

On a considerably more optimistic note, John FitzGerald argues this week that the effects of this recession may be rather different than in earlier times because this downturn has nothing to do with unwise behaviour by consumers or governments. A vaccine could, he holds, rapidly convince consumers that things are back to 'normal'.

Did you know that good sleep equals good business? In our Work section, Olive Keogh examines this theory, speaking to a business school sleep expert and offering some tips on how we can all get a better rest in these pandemic times.

And finally, this week's Wild Goose is a former flight attendant and hat designer who has reinvented herself in Spain. Kerry native Niamh Stack says she moved her family of seven to Madrid on a whim because she wanted her kids to have a second language.

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Úna McCaffrey

Úna McCaffrey

Úna McCaffrey is Digital Features Editor at The Irish Times.