Now-bankrupt Celtic Tiger property developer Seán Dunne told the High Court on Wednesday he believed he may be the only “dual bankrupt” in the world, the Irish Times reported. He made the comment in a case in which he is representing himself in his challenge to the validity of the appointment of the Irish officials who oversaw and continue to oversee his bankruptcy estate. The businessman was adjudicated a bankrupt in the United States and in Ireland in 2013, with bank debts of hundreds of millions of euro. He remains a bankrupt in both jurisdictions.

A Circuit Court judge has refused to confirm the appointment of an examiner over three companies tied to KC Capital Property Group, the Irish Times reported. The developer is appealing the decision in the High Court. That will be heard next week. KC Capital is behind a nine-storey office block on Cuffe Street beside St Stephen’s Green, known as the Greenside Building, with the court hearing it has built up debts in excess of €55 million in the construction phase but just two months of work remain.

Higher U.S. tariffs are not the main reason for a surge in Chinese exports to the eurozone, Africa and other parts of Asia, according to economists at the European Central Bank, the Wall Street Journal reported. While President Trump last year hiked tariffs on imports from countries around the world, the duties faced by Chinese businesses are higher than most other countries. That has led to a sharp fall in Chinese exports to the world’s largest economy.

The number of hospitality businesses entering insolvency eased very slightly in 2025, yet remained historically high, reflecting challenging trading conditions for the industry, CatererLicensee.com reported. Some 3,353 accommodation and food service companies, including hotels, restaurants and pubs, closed in the twelve months to December 2025, down 3.2 % from 3,465 for 2024, according to government data. Q4 saw a 2.4% improvement over Q3, with 786 companies in trouble.

Bank of Ireland is to pull out of its US leveraged acquisitions finance business, exiting a business that had accounted for the bulk of a €137 million bad loan provision in its most recent results, the Irish Times reported. The lender will run down its loan book over the next three years or so, it said in a statement. The book was worth about €1.2 billion at the end of 2025, having had an average value of €1.6 billion throughout the year, it added.

Property website Rightmove said U.K. house prices in February were virtually flat on month as a high choice of homes for sale and steadying buyer activity prevented a rise, the Wall Street Journal reported. Rightmove said that the number of homes for sale was at an 11-year high for this time of year, as confidence rebounded after the prolonged uncertainty surrounding the country’s autumn budget. According to the online real-estate platform, January was the strongest start to the year for asking prices since 2020, with prices rising 2.8% since December.

The lender that seized control of Very from the Barclay family has provided the online retailer with £150m in financial support while it attempts to engineer a sale, The Telegraph reported. U.S. investment giant Carlyle has pumped new money into Very as part of a support package to ease financial pressures on the debt-laden business. As well as providing a cash injection, Carlyle has also converted some of its debt into equity to help reduce pressure on the retailer from interest payments. The Telegraph understands that Carlyle’s total package is £150m.

Italian exports to the United States rose by more than 7% last year, data showed on Tuesday, despite tariffs imposed by President ‌Donald Trump in July which had triggered fears of a major dampening impact, Reuters reported. Imports ‌from Italy, the European Union's third-largest economy, are subject to a 15% tariff imposed on most EU goods, ​with additional duties threatened against pasta makers amid an anti-dumping probe from the U.S. Commerce Department. Nonetheless, Italian exports to the U.S.