We are now witnessing a policy reset, shifting the focus towards more proactive, growth-focused ambitions, tightly tethered to a new technological and geopolitical age. We welcome the Strategy’s policy objectives, in particular, commitments to drive innovation, tokenisation and the growth of private assets. However, ultimate success will hinge on Government and private sector follow-through and measurable achievement.
What you need to know
- Seizing opportunity: The Strategy establishes an offensive policy roadmap to leverage global technological and market transitions, by modernising domestic frameworks and promoting a variety of supports designed to sharpen Ireland’s competitive position in the digital age.
- Industry engagement: Achieving deeper industry interaction is a recurring cross-sectoral goal to be facilitated by enhanced public-private engagement channels and new expert groups.
- Measurable success: There is a material shift in how the Strategy’s success will be measured, with the introduction of 31 actions and 36 Key Performance Indicator (KPI) metrics, which should boost accountability for the delivery of committed actions.
- Accountability: The Strategy implements a restructured governance architecture, which further supports the translation of high-level commitments into concrete action.
2015 to 2030 – an evolution
The 2026 Ireland for Finance Strategy (the Strategy) reveals how geopolitical, technological and market developments have profoundly altered the financial landscape. The 2015 'IFS2020' strategy focused heavily on traditional pillars of the operating environment and talent upskilling. Subsequent Ireland for Finance plans provided a policy pathway through the challenging terrain of the post-Brexit and pandemic eras.
The 2026 Strategy is characterised by ambition, pro-activity and achieving measurable growth. While the digital era introduces risk, the Strategy is more than a survival plan: the Government is promising a visionary delivery plan that promotes digital asset use cases, AI integration, and the transition of retail wealth into capital markets.
Sectoral outlook: opportunities and actions
The Strategy contains the following key sectoral commitments:
- Funds: The Strategy commits to modernising key legislation, including the ICAV Act and the Companies Acts, to pave the way for tokenisation. A Digital Assets Industry Group will be convened and greater industry engagement will be prioritised. The (now published) Savings & Investments Roadmap, including a framework for an Investment Account, aims to transition domestic retail savings into productive capital market products, directly channelling wider public wealth into Ireland’s investment funds sector.
- Private Assets: The Government sees ‘significant opportunities for Ireland’ in growing private assets, expanding access to private equity, private credit, real estate and infrastructure investment. It also commits to progressing the modernisation of the Limited Partnership Act 1907 to support a growth in private assets, particularly investment in venture capital.
- Banking: Banking (and Payments) is a high impact area, with a goal to scale international banking. There is a commitment to deepening sectoral engagement so that public and private sectors are working in tandem.
- Structured finance: Structured finance is identified as a high impact focus area for growth, especially securitisation (the latter playing a key role in delivering the EU’s Savings & Investments Union). The Strategy recognises how structured finance supports the economy, with loan origination using SPVs playing a ‘crucial economic role’. The Department of Finance intends to review how structured finance could support blended climate/sustainable finance initiatives. It plans to strengthen sectoral engagement and progress the upcoming review of the s110 Irish SPV taxation regime.
- FinTech: The Strategy drives financial innovation by backing tokenisation and highlighting initiatives and supports, both planned and ongoing, that will ensure the continued cultivation of Ireland’s fintech sector. This includes a National Accelerator Programme, commencing in 2027. The Government signals its support for the Digital Euro project and plans to develop a Digital Wallet.
- Aviation Finance: Aviation Finance is identified as a high impact focus area with a goal to support aircraft leasing. Again, we see the Department of Finance committing to increased industry engagement.
- Financial Regulation: The Department of Finance commits to supporting the efficient and timely transposition of financial services legislation, supported by a multi-annual legislative plan, and prioritising consistency and the avoidance of gold-plating. Various existing Central Bank streamlining plans are noted, with a particular emphasis by the Government on the importance of achieving a predictable, consistent authorisation framework, to be delivered via the Central Bank’s Gatekeeping Division.
- Insurance: International and specialty insurance is identified as a strong growth opportunity, with a Specialty Forum having been established with industry to deepen engagement.
A coordinated national framework
The Strategy does not operate in isolation; it is designed as a highly coordinated execution arm of Ireland’s broader national policy architecture. It directly advances the Programme for Government’s mandate to cultivate indigenous enterprise and enhance FDI attractiveness, while its forward-looking digital initiatives are tightly aligned with the National Digital and AI Strategy 2030 and the Digital Public Services Plan 2030. Its global promotional activities and structural reforms leverage the Global Ireland 2040 masterplan and the Action Plan on Competitiveness and Productivity. By tapping into these wider strategies, the roadmap ensures that financial services competitiveness is woven into Ireland’s cohesive competitive positioning on the world stage.
Comment: all to play for
The updated Strategy is a well-crafted, forward-looking roadmap prioritising competitiveness and digital transition. However, as always, success will depend on delivery. The focus on actions, KPIs, and horizon scanning, supported by a new Policy Delivery Forum and Cabinet Sub-Group on International Financial Services, are positive steps. The ‘Ireland Inc.’ brand is a strong one, demonstrating market leadership across the sectors targeted by the Strategy. The Strategy should help to further sharpen that leading edge into the future.
If you have questions on the contents of this article, please contact a member of our Financial Services team.
The content of this article is provided for information purposes only and does not constitute legal or other advice.