The owners of polling and market research firm Red C last year paid themselves a dividend of €1.15 million.
The well known polling company has a host of blue chip clients, and also won the State contract to select the members for the Citizens’ Assembly.
New accounts show that Red C Research and Marketing Ltd recorded profits of €73,472 in the 12 months to the end of June last.This followed the firm recording profits of €33,748 in the prior year.
The dividend payout contributed to the company's accumulated profits last year falling from €1.77 million to €694,774. The payment was made to Red C's parent firm RSV Ventures Ltd. RSV's three shareholders at the time of the payment were Red C directors: Sinead Mooney, Arthur Vincent Wallace and Richard Colwell, who founded Red C in 2003 and is chief executive.
The most recent return for RSV Ventures Ltd up to March 2018 shows that Mr Colwell has a 70 per cent shareholding in the company.
Pay to Red C's five directors – who also included Carol Flanagan and Michelle Lowry – last year grew from €776,069 to €1.079 million, made up of €837,332 in remuneration and pension contributions of €241,946.
