DUBLIN WINS MOST OF ENTERPRISE IRELAND-BACKED VC INVESTMENT - Nearly three out of every four euro of venture capital (VC) investment backed by Enterprise Ireland has gone to businesses in Dublin, an Irish Independent analysis reveals.
The figures - distilled from the business development agency's new Seed and Venture Capital 2018 Report - show that EI's private fund partners have invested €938m in Irish companies from the 1994 start of the strategy to the end of 2018. Businesses within Co Dublin devoured €645m, or 68.8%, of that pie. The picture grows more lopsided in EI's 2013-18 programme figures. These show Dublin companies receiving 79.5% of all individual deals, and 74.3% of the money, from Irish investments made by EI-backed funds. In contrast, EI-backed VC in the Border region since 1994 totals €7.6m, and the midlands €8.5m. Cork and the south-west have attracted €86.8m, some 9.3% over the past quarter-century, including a single €250,000 investment from the 2013-2018 programme. Galway and the west fare better, winning €117.2m or 12.5% since 1994, including 18.4% from the 2013-2018 programme. Other regions eke out low single-digit shares of VC interest. Donnchadh Cullinan, EI's manager of growth capital and banking relations, said the agency "would like to see a better spread and we actively work with each of our managers to ensure they look at deals across all sources and locations".
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DALE FARM REPORTS 19% RISE IN PROFIT - Dale Farm, the North's largest farmer-owned dairy co-op, has reported a 19% jump in pre-tax profits to £12 million (€13.3m) in its latest financial accounts despite the "big distraction of Brexit".
Nick Whelan, group chief executive of Dale Farm, said the co-op, which is made up of more than 1,300 dairy farmers across the North, England and Scotland, also grew its turnover by 5.6% in the 12 months to March of this year to £509 million. It marks the fourth consecutive year of solid growth for the co-op, and Mr Whelan said one of the factors behind its success has been its approach to "managing" the inherent volatility in the sector, says the Irish Times. "Volatility is a big issue in the dairy sector - both in terms of the supply chain and at farm level it’s massive, and in the last three to four years we have worked very hard to support our farmer owners. We’ve strengthened our balance sheet, and we paid the leading milk price as per the 12-month rolling milk price league in Northern Ireland throughout this past financial year." The latest set of accounts also show Dale Farm grew its group operating profit by 18% to £14.3 million, while EBITDA also jumped by 15% to £20.9 million.
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REPUBLIC NOT ON BOOTS' SHOP CLOSURE LIST - Retail pharmacy giant Boots has confirmed that its store network in the Republic will not be affected by its decision to close up to 200 shops.
Sebastian James, Boots' UK and Ireland boss, confirmed on Friday that parent company Walgreens Boots Alliance has approved a plan to "consolidate" around 200 stores that are located in close proximity to other Boots outlets. However, while the company said it has only started "the optimisation process" and specific stores cannot be confirmed yet, a spokesman confirmed the closures will not impact the Republic, where there are 87 stores. He could not confirm if any shop closures will occur in the North, however. Most of the closures will affect the UK and particularly stores that are already loss-making and are within walking distance of other Boots stores, says the Irish Examiner. The earmarked shops represent around 8% of Boots' UK store network and closing them will hit the group's revenue by just 1%. Boots' Irish operations grew pre-tax profits by 12%, to €24.1m, last year, and saw revenues rise 2% to €386.2m.
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MOBILE BANKING TO OVERTAKE HIGH STREET BRANCH VISITS IN TWO YEARS - Mobile banking is set to be more popular than visiting a high street bank branch within two years, according to new forecasts, highlighting how technology is transforming the way Brits bank.
The tipping point will arrive in 2021, according to analysis by the consultancy Caci, when the number of customers regularly using branches will be overtaken by those using apps, says today's Guardian. Mobile and internet banking is already widespread in the UK. Over two-thirds of British adults used online banking and 48% used mobile banking in 2018 - up from 41% in the previous year, according to figures by UK Finance, the banking industry lobby group. 71% of customers are expected to use mobile apps for banking by 2024. Over the same period, the number of customers who bank in branches is expected to decline to 55%. The rapid uptake of app banking has forced Britain’s biggest banks to reassess their costly footprint of physical branches. Britain's banks have closed two-thirds of their branches over the last 30 years, according to Which?. There were more than 20,500 branches in the UK in 1988, but just 7,586 at the end of last year.
