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Ireland's political and cultural magazine
78March 2015
Denis revels in the contrast between his own ubiquitousness and Der-
mot’s now generally vicarious involvements
Dear Dermot,
Within a few hours of my -hour touchdown in Davos, I bumped into the Irish Times. Dressed in a sharp pink shirt, with not a bodyguard in sight, I
looked the picture of contentment as I walked along the snowy street approaching the convention centre contemplating how, with coverage like this
in the newspaper of reference, I hardly needed to bother owning all the other media.
In a brief chat, I explained that I was only in Davos for hours and the main reason for his visit was my involvement with ITU, the UN agency for
information and communication technologies.
I pronounced to my eager audience there that the Fed won’t increase rates “until late or the beginning of at the earliest” and that “...
the US and Europe have the wrong approach on Russia”. I said if I had $m to invest (which, of course, I have), I would put $m in Yandex, which
operates the biggest search engine in Russia, and $m in mobile-phone operator VimpelCom Ltd. I said oil would be $ per barrel at the end of the
year. Nobody laughed and all in all I counted myself a good balance of philanthropic, charismatic and vatic.
Tony O’Reilly has reduced his shareholding in INM, the company he controlled for almost years, and which we both er… love, to below per
cent. And ACC Bank has taken control of more than a third of Sir Loser’s . per cent stake in Providence Resources.
INM’s major investors are now Moi at . per cent; IIU Nominees, which is controlled by you, at per cent; and UK-based Polar Capital LLP at
. per cent.
Digicel, my Caribbean mobile operator, plans to raise $ million in unsecured loan notes to fund a buyback of more expensive senior debt.
The fundraising will also give the company flexibility to pay a dividend to me. I’ve taken more than $bn off the table at Digicel in recent years.
When asked by the Irish Times if any of the cash raised from the current loan note offering would be used to pay a dividend to Mr O’Brien, the com-
pany would only point to its statement referencing general corporate purposes. Morrissey, he’s just gas.
The ratings agency Moody’s on Tuesday assigned “junk” rating to the latest loan notes, due for repayment by .
“Digicel’s history of debt funded acquisitions and sizable dividend payments weigh down the rating”, said Moody’s. But it was all fine as no-one
had a fucking clue what any of it meant.
The ratings agency also highlighted concerns over Digicel’s reliance on the Jamaican market, which accounts for about per cent of Digicel’s
$.bn annual revenues. Moody’s is a sort of global financial SIPTU.
Digicel has been fighting a proposed $.bn takeover by Cable & Wireless of the cable company Columbus Communications, which would threaten
its growth in the area.
But Jamaica’s minister of technology Phillip Paulwell gave the deal the green light in the end after a number of assurances were given by Cable. For
example customers opting to terminate their contracts should be allowed to do so without penalties, which might benefit Digicel, ultimately.
Jamaica is an important market for Digicel, second only to Haiti in terms of the love we feel. In the three months to the end of June its rev-
enues there amounted to $m. Digicel had . million subscribers on the island in the middle of last year.
Newstalk, owned by Communicorp ie me, expects news from Brussels in the next month or so on its complaint about RTÉ’s use of licence-fee funds.
RTÉ’s use of licence fee funds is in breach of European Union rules on state aid. Licence fee money is being used to subsidise commercial activities,
which is discriminating against us. The complaint also outlines the background to RTÉ’s decision not to run an advertisement for Newstalk on the
grounds that its text transgressed established guidelines for ads from rivals by including a call to action, while it also claims that RTÉ is distorting
the market by selling radio advertising below cost.
Topaz Energy, Ireland’s leading petrol and convenience retailer (garage), published accounts and announced a €m investment programme.
The accounts show that the company generated EBITDA (earnings before tax, depreciation and amortisation) of €m (: €m) on revenues
of more than €.bn (: €.bn) and operating profits were up % to €.m (: €.m). Not bad since in I refinanced €m of
Topaz’s borrowings in a deal that saw €m written off the company’s debts by NAMA, effectively securing a discount of %. But then what’s a dis-
count like that when you have, of a morning, to sit across a table from Cowen and Doherty?
Talking of Nama, I’m about to convert the two BJ Marine warehouses on John Rogerson’s Quay I bought from Nama in for €m into an art
gallery, digital exhibition space, café and an idea exchange area (ie café – nice one again, Morrissey).
But enough of me and mine. You continue to disappoint as both tycoon and media dynamo, with more about sport and your kids than anything
else.
In an email to Rory’s caddie ffs and in effort to appear the man of sporting vigour you may once have been you attempted to reconcile whipper-
snapper Rory with his litigating agent: “I spoke with Rory and asked him to be upfront with his agent [Conor Ridge]. The most important thing now
is to get the legal contracts and decide on a strategy for an amicable separation between Rory and Horizon, Ridge’s company”, the one-time IFSC
founder pronounced.
The Irish franchise for Five Guys Burgers and Fries The ‘quickest growing fast casual dining restaurant business in the US’ has been secured by
your Brett, Ross and Derry. Appropriate names for billionaire progeny. Nice consonants, Sir. The Guys plan to initially open up to five restaurants in
Dublin. The menu is centred on hamburgers but its buns are said to be sweeter and “eggier” than normal. Five Guys began in when Jerry and
Janie Murrell told their four sons: “Start a business or go to college”. The business route won and the Murrell family opened a burger joint in Arling-
ton, Virginia. May the benison of God alight on your brood and mine if they follow the same noble route.
I see you’re underwriting a €m ‘cost overrun’ fundraising by Mountain Province Diamonds, of which you own per cent, owner of per cent
of Gahcho Kue, a €bn huge new diamond mine in the Canadian tundra. You’ll receive a fee of per cent of the funds raised for underwriting it.
Digicel, it ain’t.
See you in Cardiff,
Denis
