Dublin remains the most popular choice for financial services firms to relocate to post-Brexit, EY's latest Financial Services Brexit Tracker shows. The tracker reveals that 29 firms have committed to relocating staff or operations to Dublin since the Brexit referendum in 2016. Luxembourg has attracted 25 companies and is just ahead of Frankfurt which has attracted 24 firms so far, EY stated. The tracker shows that Dublin has mainly attracted insurance, banking and asset management firms, as well as a significant proportion of what are known as Globally Systemically Important Banks. Meanwhile, the companies that have chosen Luxembourg are mostly asset managers and insurers, while Frankfurt has mainly been selected by large investment banks. EY also noted that over the last three months, the number of relocation announcements from financial services firms has fallen significantly. It said this suggests that firms have paused or slowed their Brexit preparations since the October extension date was announced earlier this year. Cormac Kelly, Financial Services Brexit Lead for EY Ireland, said that those firms who have relocated, gained their licences and are operationally ready, are now focusing on "business as usual". "The challenge for them now is running their newly regulated entities across the European jurisdiction where market conditions are tough, regulators are demanding, and the need to deliver cost reduction and productivity increases are relentless," Mr Kelly said. "Given the continued confusion around the UK political landscape and uncertainty on the timeline for a Brexit outcome, firms continue to spend time and effort planning for a no-deal, but most are seriously hoping for a clear resolution soon so that they can have confidence in a more certain 2020," he added. Professor Neil Gibson, Chief Economist at EY Ireland said that Dublin's top position on the relocation league table is particularly encouraging given the increasing focus within the sector on cost reduction. He said that the moderation of house price growth in the city and very benign inflation conditions have been extremely helpful and somewhat unexpected given the pace of Irish growth. "In the event of a no-deal Brexit, the relocations will be very helpful in generating income that Government can invest to offset losses elsewhere in the economy," the economist added.

A few months after its last funding round, Dublin medtech startup CroíValve has raised an additional influx of €4 million from investors. CroíValve, founded in 2017, is developing a device for treating a heart condition called tricuspid regurgitation, where valves in the heart do not close correctly. The new funds will be invested in carrying out its first early trials using humans. The €4 million funds come in the form of €2.5 million from the EU’s Horizon 2020 programme and €1.5 million from Broadview Ventures, a Boston firm that specialises in investing in cardiovascular treatments, and existing backers Halo Business Angel Network, Atlantic Bridge University Fund and SOS Ventures. The latest tranche of funding arrives just a few months after the Trinity College Dublin spinout startup raised €3.2 million. Tricuspid regurgitation is a condition where the tricuspid valve in the heart does not seal correctly, resulting in blood flowing from the right ventricle into the right atrium. This can cause a number of outcomes including fluid retention, liver and kidney failure and can be fatal. It has traditionally been treated through open heart surgery but many of those that suffer from it are elderly and are at risk in such a serious surgery. CroíValve has developed a device called a Tricuspid Coaptation Valve that is inserted into the heart, which is minimally invasive, and seals the gap in the valves. The device has already passed pre-clinical testing and the company will now be seeking to carry out first-in-human trials. These are the initial tests on human patients. Chief executive Lucy O'Keeffe told Fora that CroíValve will commence the trials in early 2020. It is facing a lengthy period of trials and studies before the device will hit the market. "We have a long clinical journey, it's a heart valve implant. We are looking to start feasibility work in Europe with first-in-human trials and progress to feasibility work in the US and then on to more significant trials," she said. "Pivotal trials will require regulatory approval for selling the device. We have a number of years of clinical evaluation."

The Irish arm of electronic goods and mobile phone retailer Dixons-Carphone has said it continued to outperform its British parent, with "an exceptionally strong" trading performance, in the first quarter of its financial year. The group trades here under the Currys-PC World and Carphone Warehouse brands and said it increased market share across all categories including televisions, laptop computers, mobile phones and white goods. That performance was in stark contrast to the group as a whole, which said overall like-for-like sales were flat in the three months to the end of July. First quarter like-for-like UK and Ireland electronic goods sales were up, but a big fall in mobile phone sales in Britain held back total growth. Economists say recent signs of a weakening in spending by UK households raise the risk of a recession as the country prepares to leave the EU. Dixons-Carphone has guided for a group underlying pre-tax profit of around £210m (€234m) in 2019-20, down from £298m made in 2018-19.