Government will seek input on broadening investment scheme
The Government will consider expanding the scope of the Employment Investment Incentive (EII) scheme to provide improved support for startups and to enable projects to attract capital from a broader range of investors, according to Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe.He was queried this week – in a written question from Sinn Féin TD Kathleen Funchion – if a company would be able to raise funds under the [...]
Irish tech funding on course for €1bn
Venture capital funding rose 41pc to €193m in the third quarter despite barriers thrown up by Covid-19 according to new figures from the Irish Venture Capital Association. It brings to €786m the amount raised by tech and biotech firms here so far in 2020, a 39pc jump on the same period in 2019. This puts the Irish tech sector on course to exceed €1bn in [...]
ID-Pal wins Merchant Anti-Fraud Solution of the Year at the Payments Awards
ID-Pal has won Merchant Anti-Fraud Solution of the Year at the 8th Annual Payment Awards. ID-Pal enables businesses to verify the identity of customers in real-time simply, securely and conveniently. The solution is easy to use, seamless to integrate and instantly customisable to the specific needs of any business, eliminating the complexity, cost, timelines and risk associated with regulatory compliance. Businesses gain access to a [...]
Small businesses under significant financial strain, says Central Bank
The Covid-19 pandemic has put small businesses under considerable financial strain relative to larger companies, with the shock to their turnover creating significant cash-flow challenges in some sectors, Central Bank deputy governor Ed Sibley said at a SFA webinar on Wednesday. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are operating in a very difficult and uncertain environment, despite interventions to cushion the effects of the crisis, he [...]
Second wave of virus sparks speculation of new eurozone stimulus
EUROZONE economic activity slipped back into decline this month as a second wave of the coronavirus swept across the continent, heightening expectations for a double-dip recession, surveys showed on Friday. Renewed restrictions to control the pandemic forced many businesses in the bloc’s dominant service industry to limit operations, and nearly 90pc of economists polled by Reuters last week said there was a high risk the [...]
Cost of borrowing for lrish SMEs more than double the eurozone average
The cost of borrowing for lrish SMEs is more than two and a half times the euro area average, according to new interest rate data published by the Central Bank. Small businesses in Ireland were paying an average interest rate of 5.03pc in August on borrowings up to €250,000. However, the equivalent euro area rate was just 1.90pc. That gap is far wider than the [...]