AIB’s buyback, Avant’s mortgage shift, and the 5 factors in our economic recovery

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

A near-empty Henry Street in Dublin on Thursday. Eoin Burke-Kennedy looks at the five factors that will govern the delivery of our economic recovery. Photograph: Gareth Chaney

State-controlled AIB is seeking shareholder approval at its upcoming annual general meeting (agm) to allow it to buy back up to an almost 5 per cent stake from taxpayers, writes Joe Brennan. The move would allow the bank to speed up its path back to private hands.

Joe also reports that lawyers, accountants and bankers generated about €400 million of fees from hundreds of Irish special purpose vehicles in 2020. There has been a sharp increase in the number of such entities in the International Financial Services Centre in recent years.

Avant Money, the mortgage provider owned by Spanish banking group Bankinter, is expanding its low-cost mortgage offer to a range of new locations across the State. The development comes as data shows Avant now accounts for almost one in five of mortgage switches. Fiona Reddan has the story.

Tax experts say that key negotiations with the US Congress on details of a new plan proposed on Wednesday by president Joe Biden will determine the extent of its impact on the Republic. Cliff Taylor outlines the main issues that might be at stake.

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Government Covid-19 supports could be concealing many businesses' financial woes, a Deloitte partner has warned. Barry O'Halloran reports on new figures showing that 111 companies went through various insolvency procedures in the first quarter of this year, 30 per cent less than during the same period in 2020.

Goodbody Stockbrokers fell into a pretax loss of €1.8 million in 2019, as fee and commission income declined and the company invested in technology, according to its latest set of accounts. Joe Brennan has the details.

SilverCloud Health, a company that has provided online therapy and wellness programmes to millions of people globally, is making its services available to more people in the Republic through the HSE. Charlie Taylor has the details on the move, which will see SilverCloud adding to a pilot programme that delivers online psychological interventions for depression and anxiety.

In our Agenda section, Eoin Burke-Kennedy has put together a longer read on the road to economic recovery, identifying five crucial factors that will govern how quickly or slowly it comes. The process will be steeped in uncertainty, he argues.

John FitzGerald uses his economics column to ask where inflation has gone, pointing out that we were until quite recently more than aware of its direct effects on our lives. He considers the policy issues around its current low levels.

Olive Keogh delves into the lessons managers might take from a new book on how best to use technology. Andrew Hampshire's guide is condensed into two sections: technology for revenue growth and profit growth respectively.

Deliveroo had a fairly disastrous IPO this week, described by one of its bankers as "the worst IPO in London's history". Tim Bradshaw and Attracta Mooney ask exactly what went wrong for the much-anticipated launch.

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Úna McCaffrey

Úna McCaffrey

Úna McCaffrey is an Assistant Business Editor at The Irish Times