Belgian-based KBC Group’s €5 billion funding line to its Irish unit is likely to help persuade the group to remain in the Republic as it announces the result of a strategic review in two weeks’ time, according to analysts at Deutsche Bank, the Irish Times reported. KBC Group, in Ireland since 1978, is considering whether to develop the Dublin-based unit, which cost €1.4 billion to bail out during the financial crisis, into a bank-insurance company, grow the lender organically, or sell the business entirely. The review has been underway for at least a year.

Having left us fumbling around in the dark for months, British prime minister Theresa May finally flicked the light switch this week and revealed some of the UK’s strategy and the post-Brexit landscape that’s likely to unfold, the Irish Times reported. In a landmark speech that won her much acclaim from Brexiteers and the British media, May – “the new iron lady”, as the Daily Mail beamed – declared London’s intention to leave the single market and walk away from talks in the event Britain is offered a bad deal.

HSBC has agreed to stump up £4 million (€4.6m ) to pay back customers subjected to “unreasonable” debt collection practices following a regulatory probe, the Irish Times reported. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said on Friday that the bank has voluntarily agreed to set up a redress scheme for customers who were left out of pocket after paying unreasonable debt collection charges imposed by HFC Bank (HFC) and John Lewis Financial Services Limited (JLFS), both part of HSBC.

New analysis from KPMG reveals that 2016 saw the reversal of a six year downward trend in levels of insolvency for British businesses, following an uptick in companies entering into administration in the second half of the year. The numbers, taken from notices in the London Gazette, show that 1,174 companies, or groups of companies, entered into administration across the UK during 2016, compared with the 15-year low of 1,111 in the previous year. The picture in the Midlands shows a similar trend, with insolvencies in the region increasing in the year from 163 to 169.

Bus Éireann will seek the intervention of the Labour Court if trade unions do not agree to take part in talks on its survival plan for the company. However, a spokeswoman for the company said any such process must take place over a period of weeks, not months. The company said its losses were accelerating, the Irish Times reported. A number of unions have said they will not accept an invitation by the company to attend talks next week to discuss radical proposals, including redundancies and cuts to premium payments and allowances as well as out-sourcing.

European Central Bank President Mario Draghi pledged to continue the bank’s massive bond-purchase program through the end of the year, brushing off calls in Germany for an early exit and underlining a policy divergence with the Federal Reserve, which has started to raise interest rates, The Wall Street Journal reported. At a news conference, Mr. Draghi welcomed recent signs of strength in the eurozone’s €10 trillion economy, including a rebound in consumer confidence and employment, but said the improvements weren’t yet enough to trigger a course change from Frankfurt.

Another blow to national pride: on January 13th DBRS, a Canadian rating agency, downgraded Italy’s sovereign debt, stripping the country of its last A rating. Government bond-yields rose; so will the cost of funding for Italian banks. Erik Nielsen, chief economist of UniCredit, Italy’s biggest lender, calls the extra €5bn ($5.3bn) or so banks will have to put up as collateral for their loans from the European Central Bank (ECB) “immaterial”, The Economist reported. Still, it is a burden they could do without.

Irish financier Paul Coulson’s Ardagh Group unveiled plans to refinance almost $1.3 billion (€1.2 billion) of debt due in two years’ time as the glass and metal containers manufacturer lays the ground for an initial public offering in the coming months, the Irish Times reported. The company said on Thursday it was launching the sale of $1 billion of senior bonds that will mature in 2025.

Tough new banking rules will increase borrowing costs for the Republic’s aircraft leasing industry, a conference heard on Thursday, the Irish Times reported. Proposed Basel IV reforms of the rules governing how banks manage their risks are likely to make it more expensive for lenders to provide cash for assets such as aircraft and ships. In a discussion at the Global Airfinance Conference in Dublin, Stephan Sayre, managing director of aviation investment management at DVB Bank, said it was too early to assess the exact impact of the proposed change.

Finding a resolution to the problem of unsustainable losses at Bus Éireann is a matter for management and trade unions, Minister for Transport Shane Ross has indicated, the Irish Times reported. He told the Dáil that Bus Éireann was losing some €6 million a year, and this was not as a result of the State’s subvention to the company but rather due to losses being run up by its commercial Expressway arm, which faces intense competition from private operators.