Firm made loss after directors diverted funds

Spreadbetting firm MarketSpreads recorded a pre-tax loss of €709,213 in 2010 after making a €1m provision against the firm recovering debts owed by two former executive directors who diverted funds to another business.

Earlier this year in the High Court, former chief executive of Marketspreads, Brian O’Neill and his colleague Fergus Rice agreed to judgments against them for €1.68m.

They left MarketSpreads midway through last year after the board discovered they had diverted €1.4m from the company to another business in which they were involved. The judgment included the principal sum and interest.