Xavier Niel

The French billionaire who will hold on to Eir ‘until the day I die’

Worth an estimated €10bn, Niel is one of your ‘always on’ kind of entrepreneurs

Fri Oct 04 2024 - 06:00

Xavier Niel starts to mop-up US hedge funds’ Eir shares

French billionaire moving to take full control of telecoms firm

Fri Oct 04 2024 - 06:00

Eir revenues increase by 2% as more mobile and broadband customers sign up

Company says broadband and mobile customers rose by 148,000 year on year in first quarter

Thu May 23 2024 - 07:58

Eir likely to scale back dividends after €2bn in payouts since French takeover, says Moody’s

Ratings agency expects dividends to fall to no more than €150m this year and next as it raises outlook on telecom’s junk-rated debt

Tue Feb 13 2024 - 17:54

Airport operator DAA should ignore ‘arbitrary’ passenger cap in Dublin, says Michael O’Leary

Seen & Heard: RTÉ contracts come to an end, Eir dividends rise above €1bn, Kildare Village revenue jumps and stock exchange left out of financial strategy

Sun Nov 26 2023 - 12:27

Eir owner Xavier Niel to invest €200m in artificial intelligence

Intended projects include cloud supercomputer as Europe looks to compete with US and China in new technology

Tue Sept 26 2023 - 14:02

Eir paid out dividends of €1.85bn since French billionaire takeover

Telco said its fibre broadband customer base increased by 2 per cent year on year to 852,000 customers

Tue Aug 29 2023 - 07:35

Big Eir shareholder Xavier Niel and billionaire Daniel Kretinsky compete for control of French grocery chain Casino

Two competing groups offer cash injections as French supermarket races to restructure debts

Tue Jul 04 2023 - 12:04

Eir’s biggest backer in line to reap major dividend

Seen and heard: Broadband subsidies, private housing gloom and Kingspan’s Grenfell recall

Sun Jan 30 2022 - 12:02

What is Carolan Lennon’s legacy at Eir?

Telco’s first female boss is to step down later this year

Fri Jan 14 2022 - 12:40

The A to Z of financial markets in 2021

Apple soared and Zoom slumped in a year that saw markets surge to record levels

Fri Dec 31 2021 - 05:20

Europe’s telecoms giants eye deals – but is it too late to beat private equity?

Deal hesistancy followed regulators’ blocking of bid for Telefonica’s UK business

Tue Nov 23 2021 - 08:12

Eir planning to sell almost half of Irish fibre network

Financial advisory firm Lazard engaged to advise on possible transaction

Sat Oct 23 2021 - 05:15

Eir’s owner Xavier Niel looks to take his business private

French telecoms billionaire launches offer to buy out his €11bn Iliad telecoms empire

Fri Jul 30 2021 - 12:03

Virgin Media Ireland revenues rise 3% in first half of 2021 as data usage soars

Telecoms group also points to advertising recovery at Virgin Media Television

Fri Jul 30 2021 - 10:43

Eir looks to recapture lost ground from Virgin in telecoms arms race

Customers trying to get through to us had a really hard time, says Eir boss Carolan Lennon

Sat Apr 17 2021 - 05:18

If sport is not a ‘game changer’ for Eir, what will be?

Cantillon: Its rights ambitions likely faded with regime change, long before Covid-19

Sat Mar 20 2021 - 05:30

Future of Eir Sport in doubt after parent steps back from rights auctions

Eir points to Covid impact on live sports across the world

Thu Mar 18 2021 - 20:55

European stocks fall as investors turn cautious

CRH leads Dublin market higher, while sterling rises against dollar and euro

Thu Mar 04 2021 - 18:18

Eir boss backs plan for organic food ‘champion’

Xavier Neil joins with two French businessmen in sustainable consumer goods Spac

Mon Nov 30 2020 - 10:09

French billionaire Patrick Drahi offers €2.5bn for Altice Europe

Investors taking European telecoms companies private as share prices drift lower

Fri Sept 11 2020 - 16:27

Pro14 inter-pros denied a full home audience due to Eir and Virgin dispute

296,200 Virgin subscribers won’t have access after Eir removed its channels from platform

Thu Aug 27 2020 - 06:00

Virgin Media vows to withhold sports channels until Eir ‘pays its bill’

Dispute between telecoms rivals flares up as postponed European football reaches climax

Fri Aug 14 2020 - 16:51

Iseq lags behind its peers as European mood rises on trade deal hopes

Poor day on Dublin exchange for building and housing stocks, while FBD insurance group falls

Tue Nov 12 2019 - 19:38

The win-some, lose-some game of TV sports rights

For fans, it’s frustrating. For media companies, it’s expensive and perilous.

Sat Aug 24 2019 - 06:00

Siro now a serious challenger to Eir in fibre arms race

Siro boss John Keaney says telco is about to deepen operations in Cork and Galway and take the fight to Eir in Dublin’s suburbs

Fri Jul 26 2019 - 05:00

Markets calmed as Trump offers hope of a trade deal with China

Sterling slips on concerns that the next UK prime minister may push for hard Brexit

Thu May 30 2019 - 19:12

European investor to acquire Dublin’s Conrad Hotel for €118m

Archer Hotel Capital to add five-star Earlsfort Terrace property to €2bn portfolio

Thu May 16 2019 - 05:00

Telecoms tycoon Niel to sell mobile towers to Cellnex for $3bn

Businessman’s company Iliad burned through €1.44bn in cash in 2018

Tue May 07 2019 - 13:11

Chairman of Eir owner Illiad fined €600,000 for insider trading

Fine relates to Iliad’s attempt to acquire T-Mobile USA in July 2014

Tue Apr 30 2019 - 17:44

Xavier Niel faces delay in Eir dividend after refinancing

Telecom firm hit with more debt to help make €400m payment to US hedge funds

Sun Apr 28 2019 - 18:50

Eir hedge funds ‘dividend’ upped amid €1.15bn debt-raise

Dividend replaces loan note the funds received for some of their shares last year

Sat Apr 27 2019 - 07:00

Eir investors’ €300m payday stokes unpleasant memories

Latest moves will leave Eir with high debt level of 4.1 times its earnings

Wed Apr 24 2019 - 04:05

Two US hedge funds to share €300m special dividend from Eir

French billionaire Xavier Niel firms, which control Eir, not to take dividend at this time

Tue Apr 23 2019 - 09:06