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Fixed rates are often lower than variable equivalents - but that may start to change in the coming months

In a fix - should you lock down your mortgage rate?

ICS Mortgages has raised its fixed mortgage rates - and many expect other lenders will follow suit soon. Adam Maguire asks if borrowers should jump on banks' current offers before the tide starts to turn.

Business • 27 Mar 22

Sanctions have already had a significant impact on Russia's banking system, leading many people there to withdraw their money

How sanctions are put into practice by Irish firms

A wave of new sanctions have been introduced in response to Russia's attack on Ukraine, and Irish firms have to take the necessary steps to ensure they are compliant, writes Adam Maguire.

Business • 05 Mar 22

The National Asset Management Agency has generated €47 billion in cash since its inception, with €3.7 billion paid to the State

NAMA had €132m profit in first nine months of 2021

The National Asset Management Agency recorded a profit after tax of €132m in the first nine months of last year.

Business • 26 Jan 22

The Central Bank regularly issues warnings about unauthorised firms providing financial services here

Central Bank warns about eight unauthorised firms

The Central Bank has issued warnings about eight unauthorised firms that are offering financial services in Ireland.

Business • 22 Dec 21

KBC Bank Ireland's chief said the need for a high level of investment combined with a small market made it difficult to secure a return

KBC CEO says scale needed to make return in Ireland

The chief executive of departing KBC Bank Ireland has said he would probably not advise anyone to set up a full scale retail bank in Ireland similar to that of KBC.

Business • 01 Dec 21

Family loans are often used by parents to help their children buy a home

Minister halts change to tax treatment of family loans

The Government no longer plans to change the way family loans are treated for tax purposes as part of Budget 2022.

Business • 12 Nov 21

Evergrande Group claims to operate more than 1,300 building projects across 280 Chinese cities

Evergrande: The firm that's put markets into a panic

Global markets wobbled this week, as the debt woes of a single Chinese property company sparked fears of a new financial crisis, writes Adam Maguire.

Business • 26 Sep 21

Padraig Rushe and Sinead Byrne of Initiative Ireland and Kevin Johnson of CUDA

Initiative Ireland plan gets backing of Goldman Sachs

Property finance platform, Initiative Ireland, has secured the backing of Goldman Sachs Asset Management for its latest financing project.

Business • 12 Sep 21

The EU wants to eliminate its net emissions by half way through the century

EU to use finance to create climate neutral continent

The European Union has said it will harness banks and markets to funnel hundreds of billions of euros annually into sustainable investments and create the first "climate-neutral continent" by 2050.

Business • 06 Jul 21

Why is Ireland seen as unattractive by banks?

Plenty of lenders have dipped their toes in the Irish banking sector, only to discover in recent years that the temperature of the water is not to their liking, and disappear.

Analysis and Comment • 16 Apr 21

Davy bond deal fallout unlikely to end at resignations

Things got very personal at stockbroker Davy yesterday, with chief executive Brian McKiernan, deputy chairman Kyran McLaughlin, and Head of Bonds Barry Nangle all stepping down from their involvement with the company.

Business • 07 Mar 21

Lending to SMEs is concentrated around three banks, so the loss of any one of them could have a major impact on the availability of credit, Mr Sibley said

Ulster Bank exiting Irish market could hit SMEs: Sibley

An exit by Ulster Bank from Ireland could lead to a concerning reduction in competition in the SME lending market, the deputy governor of the Central Bank has said.

Business • 16 Dec 20

Standards like Bitcoin are forcing central banks to consider launching digital versions of their own currencies

ECB seeking public's input on a potential digital euro

The European Central bank "should be prepared" to possibly launch a digital currency, president Christine Lagarde has said, adding that the public will be asked to weigh in on the issue.

Business • 02 Oct 20

Digital finance apps like Revolut and N26 are growing rapidly in Ireland - particularly among younger users

Rise of money apps threatens to undermine Irish banks

After many false dawns, it now appears as though real competition has arrived. The only catch is that you need to be comfortable having your bank branch on your phone rather than the high street.

Business • 07 Sep 20

Morgan Stanley has sought to reinvent itself as a wealth manager following its near-collapse in the financial crisis

Morgan Stanley to acquire E*Trade in $13bn deal

US investment bank Morgan Stanley has announced it will buy online trading pioneer E*Trade in a deal valued at $13 billion.

Business • 20 Feb 20

Fine Gael's Paschal Donohoe criticised the spending and tax plans of Fianna Fáil and Sinn Féin

Fine Gael promises income tax, USC cuts if re-elected

Fine Gael's director of elections Paschal Donohoe has said, if his party is re-elected, nobody will have to pay the top rate of tax until they earn €50,000 a year.

Campaign Daily • 30 Jan 20

Leo Varadkar criticised spending plans published by both Fianna Fáil and Sinn Féin

Varadkar says FF, SF would lead to fresh austerity

Fine Gael leader Leo Varadkar has said a government led by either Fianna Fáil or Sinn Féin would lead Ireland back into austerity within a few years.

Campaign Daily • 29 Jan 20

Japan's economy grew an annualised 1.3% rate in the three months from April to June, revised Cabinet Office data shows

Japan downgrades Q2 GDP as trade war hits investment

Japan's economy grew at a slower pace than initially estimated in the second quarter as the US-China trade war prompted a downward revision of business spending.

Business • 09 Sep 19

Property values fell in the quarter - but households' other investments increased considerably

Households' worth rises despite dip in property values

Household's net worth reached a record high in March, according to the Central Bank, while debt levels fell to a near 14-year low.

Business • 15 Aug 19

Ireland has paid €33bn in interest the national debt in the last five years, and €60bn in the last decade

Chance of recession in Ireland is 100% - NTMA chief

The CEO of the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) has said the chances of a future recession in Ireland are 100%.

Politics • 04 Jul 19

John Moran is chair of the Land Development Agency

Govt needs to 'keep lid' on spending - ex-finance chief

The Government needs to "keep a lid on current expenditure" in October's Budget to allow for the development of capital infrastructure, according to the former Secretary General of the Department of Finance John Moran.

Politics • 30 Jun 19

Citi's branches in 22 countries across Europe have been consolidated in its Dublin operation since 2016

Citi's Dublin and German offices are Brexit-ready

International banking group, Citi, says its new investment arm has started trading across Europe out of Frankfurt, following its move there in anticipation of Brexit.

Business • 19 Mar 19

The member states now have one month, which can be extended to two, to endorse the list

EU broadens dirty-money blacklist, adds Saudi Arabia

The European Commission today proposed adding seven countries including Saudi Arabia to the EU's money-laundering blacklist of governments that do too little to thwart the financing of terrorism and organised crime.

Europe • 13 Feb 19

Irish households continue to be the fourth most indebted in the EU

Irish household debt falls to lowest level since 2004

Household debt as a proportion of disposable income fell by almost almost ten percentage points over the year to March, the biggest fall among all EU countries.

Ireland • 11 Sep 18

Minister Paschal Donohoe says he has not ruled out 'careful wage growth'

Wage growth should be sustainable - Finance Minister

The pace of wage growth needs to be sustainable and affordable to protect Ireland's competitiveness, according to Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe.

Business • 10 Jul 18