Investor Newsletter January 2026
A Warm Welcome
May I commence by wishing you and your families a Happy New Year, which hopefully will be a safe and healthy one for us all.
As we commence the second quarter of the 21st century, it’s important to look back at what happened in 2025. Countries - such as the United States, Canada, and Germany - installed new national leaders. Some African countries experienced coups, with Gen Z-led protestors resulting in the ousting of Nepali Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli. Armed conflicts heightened global instability. The Russian Ukrainian war entered its fourth year, and the United States conducted military strikes against Iran and Venezuelan vessels, resulting in further energy disruption taking place in early 2026. Greenland’s future has become the focus of the U.S again with considerable uncertainty emerging so early in 2026. On the positive side, a ceasefire deal was reached in the Israel-Hamas war, bringing an uneasy pause to two years of violence and loss of lives.
There were several firsts that made headlines also in 2025. Japan and Namibia inaugurated their first women heads of government - Sanae Takaichi and Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, respectively. On the space front, the first successful soft landing of a commercial lunar landing took place when Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost touched down near Mare Crisium on the Moon.
Sarah Mullally made history when she was appointed as the first woman to be Archbishop of Canterbury, and Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, Leo XIV, became the first American pope following the death of Pope Francis.
On the investment front on February 4th, the United States began imposing an additional 10% tariff on Chinese goods, launching a trade war between the two countries. The U.S. government later increased tariffs on other countries and continued this aggressive theme throughout 2025. This consequently has resulted in intensifying competition for critical resources, including energy and minerals, which is impacting global supply chains.
Further changes to the Irish Pensions landscape emerged during 2025 with the introduction of Auto-Enrolment, coupled with Minimum Contribution levels, creating significant challenges for small to medium sized employers, effective January 2026.
May I conclude by hoping that the angry world in which we presently find ourselves will cease, thereby, reducing the human harm and suffering. Let us again remind ourselves of CS Lewis’s words “you can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start from where you are and change the ending.‘’
We sincerely hope that you enjoy reading our first newsletter of 2026.
Mark O’Sullivan, Managing Director
