AIB Partners With Irish Life
AIB has stepped up its effort to attract more personal investment business with the launch of AIB Life, a joint venture between the bank and Great-West Lifeco, owner of
Irish Life. AIB says the new venture is the first full-service technology-led life company to be designed and built in the Irish market in a generation.
It is exclusively available to
AIB customers, and though cloud-based availing of the service starts with a compulsory 40-minute phone call with an AIB financial adviser. Once customers have been ‘suitably advised’, they gain access to the new AIB Life hub via the AIB mobile banking app.
Bryan O’Connor, CEO of AIB Life, said the platform provides protection, pensions, and investment products. The venture is creating 100 roles in customer service, technology, finance, compliance, risk and actuary at the bank’s Central Park office in Dublin and in Letterkenny, where Tata Consultancy Services operates the customer service function. Dimply, a Dublin-based fintech, will deliver in-app insights and personalised fintech experiences.
The funds range, available to view at aiblife-fundcentre.saolassurance.ie, extends to 20 repackaged Irish Life funds. AIB’s branding for mass market multi-asset funds is Fusion, the equivalent to Zurich’s Prisma range and New Ireland’s Prime suite. There are five risk variants of Fusion, and five
indexed multi-asset funds are offered, along with three bond funds and five equity specific funds.
Most of the funds are managed by Irish Life, though the Climate Impact Equity Fund is managed by NN Investment Managers. This recent fund “aims to generate positive societal impact and an attractive return at the same time” by investing in companies that contribute positively to one or more United Nations SDGs. In a sign of the times, the fund ticks the boxes for the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulations.
NN’s top corporate picks for positive climate impact include Halma, Schneider Electric, American Water Works, Danaher Corp, Anasys, Badger Meter, Kadant, Sika, and Ecolab. These stocks are not household names but may feature more prominently in portfolios in future years.
Despite elevated interest rates and inflation pressure on consumers, the tech-heavy Nasdaq stock market in New York has had its best first half of the year since 1983. The Composite Index rose 32% in the January to June period, and the momentum continued through July, with the index up to the 14,000 level recently compared with 10,400 at the start of the year.
There is still some way to go to the pre-pandemic peak of 15,500 in December 2021, and the stock pickers at Zurich won’t be banking their profits just yet.
In a note to clients, the fund manager stated it is positive about equities, and overweight US stocks. Within the equity holdings, there is a bias towards growth and quality companies, and this is reflected in the make-up of Zurich’s International Equity Fund , Zurich’s largest fund, with a fund size of €5.8bn at the end of June.
High-risk International Equity is invested across 450 companies, with the top holdings named as usual tech suspects Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon and Meta. The other top picks for the fund are Nvidia, Eli Lilly, Visa, Berkshire Hathaway and Mastercard. Pre-charges, International Equity gained 14.9% in value in H1, after falling 19.7% in 2022. On a 10-year view, annualised performance precharges is 11.0%.
The multinational sector was a drag on Ireland’s economic growth in Q1, with the industry sector recording a 13.2% decrease over Q4 2022. A new Work Life Balance law gives employees with caring responsibilities an entitlement to request flexible working, and FTTP is now the most commonly purchased broadband technology. M&A deal volume declined in H1, most notably in the software sector.
GDP REVERSAL
Revised Q1 2023 National Accounts show that Ireland’s GDP contracted by 2.8% compared with Q4 2022, with GNP down 6.9% compared with the previous quarter. Multinational sectors of the economy contracted by 9.0% q-o-q overall in Q1 2023. Personal spending increased by 0.1% in the quarter, as did Modified Domestic Demand.
PROPERTY SLUMP
Investment volume in the commercial property market slowed further in the second quarter of 2023, with €330m transacted across 26 deals compared to €920m over 27 deals in the previous quarter. Cushman & Wakefield said volume was the lowest quarterly total since Q2 2017.
T2 STREET FOOD
Dublin Airport has introduced a street food-style unit in the airside departures area of Terminal 2. The Mezz features Camile Thai, Handsome Burger, coffee shop Badger & Dodo, Mexican-inspired Ancho Hancho, and Erin’s Kitchen.
CARING LEAVE The Work Life Balance Act 2023
has been enacted and introduces five days of unpaid medical care leave for employees with caring responsibilities. The law also extends an employee’s rights under maternity leave legislation, and there is a new paid leave entitlement for victims of domestic violence.
FUNDING ROUNDS
Webio, a specialist in ‘conversational AI’, has announced €2.5m funding from
Hambro Perks and existing investor Finch Capital. Hambro Perks is providing €1.75m of venture debt.
The Irish Innovation Seed Fund has made a funding commitment of up of €35m to WakeUp Capital, an early stage impact fund that makes investments that ‘accelerate systemic change that benefits people and planet’.
Cloudcards in Limerick, which specialises in aviation software for aircraft lessors, has completed a €1.4m equity funding round.
Carrick-on-Shannon software developer Cora Systems has announced ‘significant growth equity investment’ from Scottish Equity Partners. Cora Systems provides enterprise project and portfolio management SaaS solutions.
DELOITTE HUB
Deloitte is adding 300 new jobs in Cork with the establishment of a Technology & Analytics hub over the next three years. The firm said it will be hiring across roles related to cloud technology, ESG reporting, sustainability planning, international tax, technology and digital risk.
PRCA AWARDS FleishmanHillard and Springboard Communications
won the main agency awards at the annual PRCA Awards for Excellence in Public Relations 2023. Heneghan PR, Legacy Communications, Alice PR, AM O’Sullivan PR and Hanover were highly commended.
FDI PROJECTS
IDA Ireland said its outlook for foreign direct investment
remains strong for the second half of the year after funding 139 FDI projects with the potential of 12,000 jobs in H1 2023. Fifty two investments were by ‘new name’ companies, and 67 were approved for regional locations.
Liberty IT has established a new hub in PorterShed, the Galway innovation space, and announced plans to hire an additional 100 staff. The company develops technologies exclusively for parent company Liberty Mutual Insurance.
FIBRE GROWTH
Fibre-to-the-premises broadband accounted for 33.2% of total fixed broadband subscriber lines in Q1 2023, up from 25.2% in Q1 2022. Of the FTTP broadband connections, 75% have sold speeds equal to or greater than 500MB.
UNSECURED LOANS
AIB has agreed to become an on-lender for the Ukraine Credit Guarantee Scheme, which has a lending ceiling of €1.2bn for unsecured discounted loans to facilitate working capital and medium-term investment. Bank of Ireland signed up for the scheme in January 2023.
M&A DEALS
M&A deal volume in Ireland declined year-on-year in H1 2023, according to Renatus, which tallies deal activity. Renatus counted 198 deals in H1 compared with 226 in H1 2022, with most deal activity recorded in financial services. The adviser and investor says that software M&A deals have seen a significant decline on 2022.
Accountancy firm and business adviser Moore Ireland has been acquired by UK sister
firm Moore Kingston Smith LLP, subject to CCCP approval. Founded in 1970 in Cork, Moore employs 135 people in Cork and Dublin.
American digital engineering group GlobalLogic has reached an agreement to acquire Sidero, which is based in Athlone and was founded in 2013 and employs c.150 people. Its services include software development, cloud migration support, and a range of managed services.
Zeus Group, the packaging multinational led by Brian O’Sullivan, has acquired James Hamilton Group in Northern Ireland. JHG has annual turnover of c.€18m and employs 120 people.
American firm Utility Innovation Group has acquired Enicity, an advisory firm specialising in the application of energy technologies in power systems.
Ifac, the agri-sector accountancy firm, has subsumed Friel Stafford, a specialist in corporate recovery, forensic accounting, and corporate finance.
AIM listed RWS Holdings plc has acquired Propylon in Dublin for €30m with additional deferred payments of €6.4m. Propylon provides solutions for clients to solve legal, compliance and regulatory challenges. The company had turnover of €10.5m and Ebitda of c.€3.5m in FY22.
Packaging Holdings has expanded into the UK in a merger deal with Grafham Holdings, which specialises in the manufacture and distribution of food packaging and printed labels. Grafham Holdings has annual turnover of c.£30m and has c.120 employees.
3i Group plc has acquired Panelto Foods, the bakery group specialising in bake-off artisan breads. Founded in 2004, Panelto is owned by William and Alison Malloy, and in the year to October 2022 turnover was c.€63m.
Azzurri Group, a UK casual dining chain, has acquired a controlling interest in Boojum from Renatus Capital Partners. The Mexican-themed chain has 14 outlets in Ireland and turnover in the year to April 2022 was €24m.
Portwest, the Mayo workwear, safety footwear and PPE multinational, has announced the acquisition of Canadian company IFR Workwear, a premium flame resistance brand. IFR Workwear has a factory in Mexico, two warehouses in USA and Canada, and employs c.250 people.
Private equity firm Erisbeg has acquired a majority stake in EMR Integrated Solutions, a provider of integrated operational telecoms and cyber security solutions for utilities and network operators in Ireland and the UK.
SOLAR FARM
Bord na Móna and have commenced construction on a 108MW solar farm project in Kildare, which is expected to be operational by the end of 2024.
EXPRESS BUS ESB
National Express has formally launched a new bus service connecting Dublin and Belfast via Dublin Airport. The route has 16 trips per day in each direction and takes in central Belfast, the two terminals at Dublin Airport, and Burgh Quay and Westland Row in Dublin city centre.
PAKMAN AWARDS
Repak is inviting entries for the 2023 Pakman Awards, which for the first time has a new ESG Leader award category. The awards ceremony will take place in October and nominations close on August 31.