Irish Tech News Audio Articles Irish Tech News

Revolut, the financial app with more than 40 million customers worldwide and over 2.8 million in Ireland, has added bonds to its investment offering in Ireland. Its investment services in the EEA are provided by Revolut Securities Europe UAB (Revolut).
Bonds emerge as a good starting point for those individuals who tend to be more risk-averse, normally offering stability and great portfolio diversification. Good credit ratings and protection against inflation further contribute to their appeal for investors seeking stability and potentially reliable returns.
Both governments and corporations utilise bonds as a means to raise capital, offering investors the chance to effectively lend money in exchange for periodic interest payments and eventual repayment of the principal amount. Different bond types offer various risk and return profiles, and they should be assessed accordingly. Bonds' returns might also make them a good hedge in case of a wider economic downturn.
Revolut currently allows trading of close to 40 corporate and government bonds and will expand the list in the upcoming months. The minimum amount to start investing in bonds is USD/EUR 100, with 0.25% fixed fee per trade (min. USD/EUR 1). Other fees may apply.
This is yet another step in Revolut's mission to build an all-in-one investment platform that is multi-asset class, has coverage across EEA markets, and caters to both advanced and beginner users. With access to 2,800+ US and EU listed companies, and 500+ Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs), users can check the performance of their investments in real-time with live watchlists, trading charts, and market news - all within the Revolut app.
Earlier this year, Revolut also removed the custody fees (0.12% of the annual market value of the assets held by the client) across all the financial instruments offered in the app to UK and EEA customers by Revolut Trading Ltd and Revolut Securities Europe UAB, respectively.
Rolandas Juteika, Head of Wealth and Trading (EEA) at Revolut, said: "We continue expanding Revolut investment offering with bonds, a great way to diversify the investment portfolio, hedge against uncertainty, and generate fixed income. With higher potential returns and diversification benefits, bonds offer a compelling alternative for investors seeking to build wealth and preserve capital."
Maurice Murphy, General Manager at Revolut Bank UAB - Ireland Branch, added: "Bonds trading is just another way in which we are solving all things money for our customers in Ireland, and we expect this to be a very useful addition for those wishing to grow their wealth. Along with our recently introduced Instant Access Savings product and our automated portfolio management tool Robo-Advisor, Revolut remains a frontrunner in helping Irish people to grow their finances more broadly."
Revolut has recently introduced a wide array of investment options for its customers across the EEA, all available within the Revolut app: US, EEA stocks, ETFs and now bonds. The company has also introduced Trading Pro - a paid subscription that offers, among other benefits, access to pricing benefits (e.g. lower commission fees and higher order size limits) and additional analytics features.
For those less experienced investors, Revolut offers its Robo-Advisor service, which is most advantageous for customers who have limited or no trading experience or simply don't have time to do extensive research and actively trade.
Investment services in the EEA are provided by Revolut Securities Europe UAB ("Revolut"), which is an investment firm authorised and regulated by the Bank of Lithuania. As with all investments, capital is at risk. The value of investments can go up and down. Past performance, as well as a bond yield shown in gross, is not a reliable indicator of future performance and Revolut does not guarantee that your investment objectives will be achieved or that the portfolio will generate returns.
You might lose your whole investment if t

OxygenCare, a leading provider of life-saving medical equipment and solutions, announces a new partnership with Defibtech, a manufacturer of life-saving resuscitation devices, to improve the availability of rescue-ready defibrillators in Ireland which could save lives.
Defibtech, a long-standing American manufacturer in medical technology, is dedicated to crafting dependable, affordable, and user-friendly products, empowering communities globally to respond to sudden cardiac arrest.
Joseph Mullally, Senior Vice President of Commercial Operations, Defibtech, said: "Partnering with an industry leader like OxygenCare was a natural fit for Defibtech. We have a shared mission to provide emergency medical technology and spread awareness which can save lives. We recognise that the true impact of our work lies not only in the accessibility of our products but also through knowledge and skills".
Cardiovascular disease remains a leading cause of death in Ireland, with at least 9,000 deaths and 25,000 hospital admissions each year according to the HSE. The availability of functional defibrillators is crucial, and inadequate maintenance has rendered many devices non-functional, exacerbating the issue.
Conrad Wynne, Senior Product Specialist, Resuscitation, OxygenCare, said: "This partnership with Defibtech not only enhances our critical care offering but enables us to help ensure that AEDs across Ireland are both available and functional when people need them. Emergency situations arise all the time and every second counts in these situations, so having operational, life-saving technology is crucial.
As a leading provider of emergency and resuscitation equipment, OxygenCare has extensive experience and a long-standing reputation in the Irish healthcare industry. The addition of Defibtech's Lifeline AED (automated external defibrillators) greatly enhances its existing portfolio.
Joseph Mullally added: "By combining our defibrillator products with OxygenCare's support and service, we're equipping organisations and communities across Ireland with the tools, knowledge and confidence to act decisively in the face of cardiac emergencies. Together, we are on a journey to reach this goal, saving lives and safeguarding communities, one heartbeat at a time."
See more stories here.

CÚRAM, the Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) research centre for medical devices based at the University of Galway, today launched an economic report that puts its value to the Irish economy at €756 million, building on 10 years of public investment.
CÚRAM was established in 2015 with an initial commitment of Government investment of €64.8 million through Science Foundation Ireland.
Economic impact analysis carried out by Mazars shows that investment in CÚRAM, to the end of 2023, has led to direct spending of €210 million in the Irish economy and the generation of a further €546 million in economic activity in Ireland - putting its economic value at €756 million and a more than 10-fold return on government funding.
CÚRAM has helped to expand Ireland's attractiveness as a global hub for the medtech sector - one of only a handful of locations in the world - by establishing partnerships and by fully funding or co-funding collaborative projects with 47 innovative companies in the sector.
Investment in CÚRAM has also supported a total of 2,547 jobs in the Irish economy.
In addition, more than €80 million of EU grant funding has been committed to research projects at CÚRAM.
Welcoming the report, Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science,?Patrick O'Donovan, T.D., said: "I congratulate CÚRAM for its significant impact on the Irish economy and society. This report demonstrates the importance of the Government's policy of continuing to invest in research and innovation and supporting excellence and scale through the world-leading SFI Research Centre Network in areas of strategic national importance.
"CÚRAM provides innovative solutions for industry and society, which enable better quality of life for patients. As our population ages, this is helping us to create a better tomorrow for all citizens."
Professor Ciarán Ó hÓgartaigh, President of the University of Galway, said: "I would like to congratulate CÚRAM as they mark ten impactful years of research. The centre epitomises what it means to be for the public good. The real value of CÚRAM remains its people, and its key strength lies in building collaborations and networks that generate impactful research."
Dr Siobhan Roche, Director of Science for the Economy at Science Foundation Ireland, joined in the celebration of the Centre's success, said: "CÚRAM has a strong track record of generating high-quality research and training the next generation of medical device researchers. The Centre's deep commitment to education and public engagement is not only inspiring younger generations to pursue a career in STEM but is also promoting new approaches in the management of chronic illness.
Amplifying its impact, CÚRAM has attracted over €225.7 million in additional investment from industry and EU sources, further highlighting the value of publicly funded research to the Irish taxpayer."
CÚRAM Director, Professor Abhay Pandit, said: "Addressing chronic disease to support healthy aging is one of the most pressing public health and economic challenges of our time. Our research programme is developing solutions to help us all live well as we age, with conditions like cardiovascular disease, diabetes and neurological disorders."
CÚRAM has a further three years of operation left in its current Government funding period to build even further on its impact. By connecting the patient voice with the combined expertise and technologies of Ireland's leading scientists, clinicians and engineers from 10 universities, alongside international industry partners, the Centre ensures that its research is shaped and guided by the invaluable perspectives of people with lived experience of chronic illness.
Dr Eoghan Ó Faoláin, Director of Irish MedTech: "Ireland is one of the top employers of MedTech professionals in Europe, and it is in no small part due to our rich talent pool of third-level graduates and dynamic supports for upskilling. By fosteri

Vodafone Ireland has been named the best mobile network for the 9th consecutive year by independent benchmarking organisation umlaut. It assessed all mobile networks available and is the most comprehensive test in Ireland. Vodafone has also been recognised as the 'Best Choice' for broadband and mobile converged services.
For mobile, the company achieved 'Best in Test' and scored highest above its competitors, with a score of 922 points out of 1000, the highest score ever received for mobile in Ireland. As well as number one nationwide, Vodafone has received "Best in Reliability" with the highest score across this category.
Amanda Nelson, CEO of Vodafone Ireland, said: "We are absolutely delighted with this external recognition of the reliable network experience our mobile and fixed customers enjoy. Our entire team at Vodafone Ireland are passionate about ensuring 'always on' connectivity for our customers in homes and businesses throughout the country.
We are committed to investing in our network and customer experience, and to score the highest marks ever for any mobile network in Ireland is a great moment and validation of that work."
Umlaut, which this year assessed more than 200 networks in over 120 countries, tested and measured the performance of networks offering both mobile and fixed broadband converged services across Ireland for the first time. In conducting the mobile benchmark analysis, umlaut carries out a 5,500 km drive and walk test, across five cities, 16 towns and all major roads with 10,000 voice calls and 75,000 data sessions.
This equates to 40% population coverage. The true customer experience is even more extensive, using
crowd-sourced data from 98% of the population and testing an area of 62,962 km2. To measure fixed broadband, 3.7 million samples were collected from 4187 lines.
Vodafone Ireland is amongst the top-performing mobile networks worldwide. When it came to converged broadband services, Vodafone came out on top for fixed broadband with an overall score of 941 points out of 1,000.
The recognition comes as Vodafone continues to invest in its network. Following its €300 million investment over the last three years, an additional €500 million is currently being deployed over the next four years to enhance services for customers.
The investment in the network includes the shut off of 3G and transition to the stronger and more sustainable 4G and 5G networks to provide the most reliable network experience across Ireland. The 3G shut-off has already been successful in Limerick, Cork, and Galway city, with Dublin City set to follow in the coming weeks.
Earlier this year, Vodafone won the award for Best Mobile Performance in 2023 with nPerf for the 2nd year in a row. Nperf points are calculated based on five key performance indicators (KPIs) of Download Speed, Upload Speed, Latency, Web browsing and YouTube Streaming. Vodafone came out on top across Upload Speed, Latency, Web browsing and YouTube Streaming.
More about Irish Tech News
Irish Tech News are Ireland's No. 1 Online Tech Publication and often Ireland's No.1 Tech Podcast too.
You can find hundreds of fantastic previous episodes and subscribe using whatever platform you like via our Anchor.fm page here: https://anchor.fm/irish-tech-news
If you'd like to be featured in an upcoming Podcast email us at Simon@IrishTechNews.ie now to discuss.
Irish Tech News have a range of services available to help promote your business. Why not drop us a line at Info@IrishTechNews.ie now to find out more about how we can help you reach our audience.
You can also find and follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat.

Integrity360, one of the leading pan-European cyber security specialists, has announced the launch of a fully managed service spanning the portfolio of cyber security and network solutions by Fortinet, a global cybersecurity leader driving the convergence of networking and security, in Ireland.
Integrity360 is launching this new service for SMEs and enterprises across Ireland, the UK and Europe amid demand from customers to reduce the complexities and challenges associated with a threat landscape which is constantly changing.
Integrity360 is leveraging its in-depth expertise in designing and managing Fortinet-powered solutions to provide an end-to-end managed service which consolidates multiple vendors and technologies. As well as enabling customers to better manage advanced technologies and equipping them with the necessary skills, it will also boost solution efficiency and reduce costs.
The service includes the Fortinet Security Fabric platform, the most integrated, most open portfolio of products in the industry, backed by one operating system (FortiOS), one unified agent (FortiClient), one management console (FortiManager), one data lake (FortiAnalyzer), open APIs, and integration with over 500 third-party products.
In addition, Secure SD-WAN enhances work-from-anywhere with a comprehensive SASE solution by integrating cloud-delivered SD-WAN with Security Service Edge (SSE). The service provides customers with 24/7 monitoring to proactively identify any issues and manage any incidents that occur. It also provides access to Integrity360's remote security operations centre (SOC) and service desk support.
In turn, the holistic managed service will result in cost savings, increased uptime, strengthened data security, and enhanced business performance for organisations.
Brian Martin, Director of Product Management, Integrity360, said: "This service provides customers with a one-stop network and cyber security shop for the ever-evolving business landscape. Customers can avail of a portfolio of managed services tailored to their individual needs, removing the increasing complexities associated with deploying and managing solutions in-house, and enabling them to focus on their core business objectives.
"Companies can often implement solutions and services with digital acceleration front of mind, with the issue of security becoming an afterthought. We are increasingly seeing a trend in the industry around security and network convergence, and we believe that one unified and consolidated managed service will help to relieve pressure on customers, while enabling them to keep pace with current demands."
Paul Donegan, country manager for Ireland, Fortinet, added: "Integrity360, a longstanding partner of Fortinet, consistently ensures their engineers and sales teams stay abreast of Fortinet's product advancements. We're thrilled to collaborate with our Expert Partner, Integrity360, as an MSSP, expanding access to Fortinet's Security Fabric as a service across SMEs and Enterprises across Ireland, the UK and Europe."
See more stories here.
More about Irish Tech News
Irish Tech News are Ireland's No. 1 Online Tech Publication and often Ireland's No.1 Tech Podcast too.
You can find hundreds of fantastic previous episodes and subscribe using whatever platform you like via our Anchor.fm page here: https://anchor.fm/irish-tech-news
If you'd like to be featured in an upcoming Podcast email us at Simon@IrishTechNews.ie now to discuss.
Irish Tech News have a range of services available to help promote your business. Why not drop us a line at Info@IrishTechNews.ie now to find out more about how we can help you reach our audience.
You can also find and follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat.

Minister Alan Dillon, Minister of State at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage has launched a new EnergyCloud project in Galway with Amazon Web Services (AWS).
The initiative, which was announced as part of an ongoing collaboration between not-for-profit EnergyCloud Ireland and Amazon Web Services (AWS), will enable families in 150 homes in Galway to receive free tanks of hot water from surplus renewable energy.
Over 150 Galway families will soon have their homes equipped with an EnergyCloud enabled smart device to allow them to benefit from free tanks of hot water from surplus renewable energy. The device uses surplus renewable energy, which would otherwise be wasted, to heat immersion tanks.
Speaking at the launch of the installation programme at the Gusta Gaoithe wind farm in Ardderoo, Minister of State at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Alan Dillon TD, said: "This is an ambitious and creative project between EnergyCloud Ireland and Amazon Web Services and I'm delighted to have the opportunity to officially launch this programme in Galway."
"The Government has clear ambitions under the Climate Action Plan in relation to flexible demand management, which maximises the efficiency of our renewable electricity generation and reduces our dependence on fossil fuel generation at peak demand times.
As more and more smart energy solutions for renewable energy generation, storage and sharing continue to be developed, the Government expects more homes to be able to take advantage of excess renewable energy, thereby reducing their energy costs and carbon footprint. We know from EirGrid that there is a significant amount of dispatched down renewable energy which could be utilised in other ways, such as to heat hot water tanks. That is why initiatives such as EnergyCloud are so important."
Neil Morris, Country Lead for Ireland at AWS said: "AWS has been investing in Ireland for over 15 years and this collaboration with EnergyCloud Ireland highlights our continued commitment to local communities. EnergyCloud Ireland is a great example of an innovative technology solution where businesses can work together to create positive social impact."
At the event, Minister Dillon was joined by representatives from Wind Energy Ireland, AWS, EnergyCloud Ireland and a range of state and other agencies.
CEO of Wind Energy Ireland, Noel Cunniffe commented: "The vision of EnergyCloud is to use wind energy which would otherwise be wasted to instead provide hot water for homes living in energy poverty. As a country, we are working towards having 80% of Ireland's electricity coming from renewable sources by 2030, and that will make us much more weather dependent.
Initiatives such as EnergyCloud help to maximise that opportunity to use energy when the wind is blowing while also helping people in fuel poverty."
John Mullins, Chairperson of EnergyCloud Ireland, concluded: "This support from Amazon Web Services will allow EnergyCloud to support families throughout Galway. Access to free renewable energy means that families that are part of the EnergyCloud project can simultaneously save money on electricity while reducing their use of fossil fuels.
The project is a win-win-win as we are collectively creating solutions for surplus energy rather than simply switching off wind turbines and solar panels. For example, according to EirGrid, 5480 GWh of renewable wind energy was dispatched down between 2018 and 2023. That energy could have heated 1.825 billion hot water tanks and the approximate retail value of this wasted wind energy was €1.592 billion."