Beleaguered ChildFund Ireland ‘open to takeovers or mergers’

Interim charity chief executive paused previous merger talks during investigation by regulator which found ‘excessive and inappropriate spending’ by the former chief and finance director

Michael Kiely, the former chief executive of ChildFund Ireland.

ChildFund Ireland, the beleaguered charity, is open “to all potential scenarios” of mergers or takeovers after a damning report by the Charities Regulator found excessive spending on salaries and expenses and inadequate oversight by its board.

The report found that the charity had been warned as far back as 2017 that its salaries to key management were “excessive and may be considered tantamount to mismanagement of public funds”.

Martin Nolan, the charity’s interim chief executive, who took over after the period examined by the regulator, told the Business Post that the charity had been forced to pause previous merger talks because of the regulator’s investigation.