Dermot Desmond facts for kids

Dermot Desmond (born 14 August 1950) is a very successful Irish businessman. He is known for his smart investments and for owning parts of many different companies. People say he is one of the richest people in Ireland. He is also the biggest individual owner of the famous Celtic F.C. football club.

Early Life and School

Dermot Desmond was born in Macroom, County Cork, Ireland, in 1950. He grew up in a place called Marino in Dublin. He went to Scoil Mhuire in Marino and then to Good Counsel College in New Ross. After finishing school in 1968, he started working at Citibank in Dublin.

Business Adventures

Dermot Desmond's business journey began in 1968 at Citibank. He also worked for a company called Price Waterhouse in Afghanistan.

Starting His Own Company

In 1981, he started his own company called National City Brokers (NCB) in Dublin. This company competed with bigger, older stockbroking firms. Desmond sold NCB in 1994 for a lot of money, about £39 million. Later, the company was bought back by its managers.

Leading Aer Rianta

In 1990, he became the chairman of Aer Rianta, which managed Ireland's airports. He left this role in 1991.

International Investments

In 1995, Desmond started his main investment company, International Investment & Underwriting (IIU). This company helps him invest in many different businesses. It is located in Dublin's financial center. Through IIU, he has invested in companies like Daon, Inc., which works with biometric technology (like fingerprint scanning).

Baltimore Technologies

In 1996, Desmond supported a group that bought Baltimore Technologies. This company grew very quickly because it worked with e-commerce. It even became one of the top 100 companies in the UK for a short time. However, it faced problems when the "dot-com bubble" burst.

Luxury Hotels

In 1997, Desmond and his business friends, John Magnier and J.P. McManus, bought the fancy Sandy Lane Hotel in Barbados. They spent a lot of money, US$450 million, to make it even better. It reopened in 2001.

London City Airport

Desmond bought London City Airport in 1995 for £23.5 million. Many people thought this was a risky move because the area around the airport was struggling. But the airport became very successful and made a lot of money. Desmond sold it in 2006 for a huge amount, £750 million!

Betting Exchange

In 2000, Desmond started BETDAQ, which is a betting exchange. It's like a marketplace where people can bet against each other. It became the second-largest betting exchange in Ireland. He sold BETDAQ in 2013 but later bought it back in 2021.

Other Investments

Desmond has invested in many other companies over the years. He was a big owner of the Irish food company Greencore for a while. In 2005, he opened a private gaming club in Dublin called the Sporting Emporium. He also bought a large part of a Latvian bank called Rietumu Banka.

In 2008, he was asked to be the chairman of the Irish airline Aer Lingus, but he said no because he was too busy. More recently, in 2018, he increased his ownership in a diamond mining company called Mountain Province Diamonds. He also got permission to build a very large house in Dublin.

Business Discussions and Inquiries

Dermot Desmond has been involved in many large business deals. Some of these deals have been looked into by official reports and tribunals in Ireland. These investigations aimed to understand how certain business transactions happened. For example, one report looked into the sale of a property in Dublin. Another tribunal discussed payments made to public figures. Desmond always stated his side of the story regarding these matters.

Esat Digifone Investment

Desmond was an investor in Esat Digifone, a telecommunications company. He owned 20% of the company. When he sold his share, he made a large profit, reportedly around £100 million.

Sports Interests

Dermot Desmond is very involved in sports, especially football and horse racing.

Football

He is the biggest individual owner of the famous Scottish football club Celtic F.C.. He used to own a part of Manchester United F.C. but sold his shares in 2005. In 2019, he also bought a 25% share in the Irish football club Shamrock Rovers.

Horse Racing

Desmond owns racehorses. One of his most famous horses is Commanche Court. This horse won several important races, including the Triumph Hurdle in 1997 and the Irish Grand National in 2000.

Dermot Desmond's Business Holdings

Here are some of the businesses and investments Dermot Desmond has been involved with:

• Baltimore Technologies
• BETDAQ betting exchange
• Celtic FC
• Daon, Inc.
• Datalex
• Greencore
• International Investment Underwriters (IIU)
• Intuition Publishing Ltd. (eLearning Company)
• London City Airport
• Mountain Province Diamonds
• Rietumu Banka
• Sandy Lane Hotel
• Shamrock Rovers FC
• Sporting Emporium Casino
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