Dermot Desmond
| Dermot Desmond | |
|---|---|
| Born |
14 August 1950 Macroom, County Cork |
| Residence | UK, Gibraltar, Barbados |
| Occupation | Largest individual shareholder within Celtic Football Club |
| Net worth |
 €1.35 billion
|
| Spouse(s) | Pat Desmond |
| Children | 4 |
Dermot Desmond is an Irish businessman and financier. He is estimated to be worth €1.35 billion and is ranked by the Sunday Independent as the seventh-richest person in Ireland.
Desmond was born in Macroom, County Cork in 1950 and grew up in Marino, Dublin. He was educated at Scoil Mhuire, Marino and Good Counsel College in New Ross. He left school in 1968 to work at Citibank in Dublin.
In 1968, Desmond's business career began with Citibank in Dublin, followed by Pricewaterhouse Coopers in Kabul, Afghanistan.
In 1981 he founded National City Brokers in Dublin. The company competed with already established stockbroking names in Dublin such as Davy's and Goodbodys. Desmond sold the company to Ulster Bank in 1994, which at the time was part of the National Westminster Group, for a reported £39 million. Subsequently as a result of Natwest's takeoever in 2003 by RBS, NCB was bought out by its management with the support of former billionaire businessman Sean Quinn who is believed to now control 25% of the company.
He was appointed chairman of the board of Aer Rianta in 1990 under the Charles Haughey government, but resigned in October 1991 amid the scandal over the purchase of the Johnston Mooney & O'Brien site by Telecom Éireann.
In 1995 he founded International Investment & Underwriting (IIU), a private equity firm and his primary investment vehicle. It is located in Ireland's International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) and is regulated by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority. Companies that are controlled through IIU include BETDAQ (an international betting exchange) and DAON (a biometric enabling technology company). IIU Asset Strategies Limited is the hedge fund arm of the company, offering convertible bonds and equity funds.
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