How Billionaire Sean Quinn Lost His Money

Publish date: 2024-04-14

Quinn once employed 8,000 people worldwide, with most of those jobs having been created on the border between Northern Ireland — part of the United Kingdom — and the independent Republic of Ireland. In 2012, Quinn found himself bankrupt and in prison after be held in contempt of court for attempting to keep his assets out of reach of the Irish Banking Resolution Corporation (IBRC), which claimed the Quinn family owed it over $2 billion. "They took all my money, my company, put my son in jail, put me in jail and they have proven nothing," he told reporters on his way to jail. 

A year earlier, Quinn had declared bankruptcy in a court in Belfast, Northern Ireland, after the property crash of the Great Recession tanked his entire fortune. It was the largest bankruptcy filing in UK history. Since he'd filed in Northern Ireland, he would only have to wait one year before going back into business there. Hoping to avoid the more punishing consequences south of the border, he tried to hold off declaring bankruptcy in the Republic of Ireland, but wasn't able to. According to RTE, he was forced to declare bankruptcy there in January 2012 and accused the IBRC of having a "vendetta" out against him and his uber-rich family. "Today Anglo achieved their goal of ensuring that I will never create another job," he said.

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