Insights

Katharine Byrne and Rory O’Keeffe recently featured in The Irish Times Special Report on Mergers & Acquisitions.

Fancy a career in mergers and acquisitions? Qualifying as an accountant at a top advisory firm, can be a good way in.“The benefit of accounting is that you understand what’s going on in companies,” she says.

Many companies underestimate the M&A process which can include unrealistic expectations on valuation and timescale, says Katharine. She says poor preparation not only results in delays but can have significant impact on the value of the business for vendors.

“The biggest trends we are witnessing with the evolution of the Irish M&A system is the internationalisation of this sector. International capital has been flowing into Ireland and that in turn has driven a lot of confidence and allowed Irish companies to scale and expand.”

“We are seeing increasing international interest from a wide spectrum of investor types, from international private equity firms looking for new investment opportunities or bolt-on investments to their existing portfolio companies, to public and private corporates seeking acquisitive growth...

The post-merger integration of employees and cultures is vital to the success of any M&A so it’s important to prepare staff and make a plan to avoid the “us and them” mentality that can sometimes arise when doing a major deal like this.

Last year was a “banner year” for M&A activity, breaking all previous records, this was because the “bounce back” seen in the latter half of 2020 continued into 2021, says Katharine.

Proper record-keeping can make the difference between a successful R&D tax credit claim and a rejection letter from the tax authorities. Issues such as missing or insufficient records, a common problem for many companies, can be mitigated or eliminated with the right processes, approaches and...

Developments in sustainability reporting have moved at an unprecedented pace in recent months and years.  The demand for sustainability disclosures to be made by entities in a globally consistent manner has become  a priority for the investor community as well as various levels of government...