Out of Office: FAI, EirGrid and Digicel change hands
The Business Post gets you up to date with the big stories of the day
Welcome to the Business Post’s Out of Office, your round-up of the day’s business, tech, markets, legal and politics news.
Monday was quiet across many realms of business affairs. Appointment notices was not one of them.
The most seismic of all was the announcement that Jonathan Hill will step down as the chief executive of the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) at the end of this month, with David Courell, its chief operating officer, to take over on an interim basis.
Hill’s exit comes after months of scrutiny after this publication revealed that the FAI had overpaid him in breach of government-sanctioned agreement. Speculation around his future intensified following a somewhat disastrous appearance at the Public Accounts Committee in February.
Eoin O’Hare reflects on Hill’s time at the helm of organisation.
Analysis: Jonathan Hill’s Pac own goal will be his legacy as FAI chief
Denis O’Brien’sn Digicel has appointed the chief executive of a leading Colombian mobile phone operator as its new group head, while Mark Foley has retired as the boss of EirGrid effectively immediately. The grid operator - which is in a hectic period as energy security and the country’s relationship with data centres - did not give a reason for his sudden exit.
Mason Hayes & Curran also had news of a new partner, while Allianz named its new chief operating officer.
Elsewhere, our legal correspondent Catherine Sanz has been busy in the courts.
She’s currently across a fascinating case of a cash-for-visa funded nursing home operator facing numerous legal actions from Chinese investors. You can read the latest on that here.
Plans for a new international airport in Wicklow would need to show a business case that benefits the public, Eamon Ryan has said, while Italy’s competition authority has launched a probe into Ryanair over a possible abuse of dominant position causing "serious and irreparable" damage to travel agencies.
Following on from our Sunday splash, Taoiseach Simon Harris was asked about Budget 2025. He said that the government will be in a position to progress changes to tax and social welfare measures in this year’s package, but that he would not be providing a “running commentary” on every idea speculated upon.
News in brief
* Current disinflation is ‘necessarily bumpy’ - Philip Lane
* Questions in Glenveagh’s €8m alleged shakedown case require ‘deeper investigation’
* State to install cameras at traffic lights under new road safety strategy
* Glanbia acquires US-based Flavor Producers in deal worth up to $355 million
* Irish-founded Hometree secures multimillion pound debt facility
What Businesspost.ie subscribers are reading
* Revealed: Government officials ‘hugely surprised’ by regulator’s PTSB dividend move
* Laughing all the way to the bank – why Brits derided ‘Laurel and Hardy’ line-up at Kilkenomics
* LDA property boss: Landowners sitting on sites that can’t be developed at affordable prices
* Big mouth strikes again: Paddy Cosgrave’s return to Web Summit ensures controversy continues
* Amazon and Google warn Ireland risks long-term economic damage over data centre plans
