



In America, the press called him the "European realty tsar". His Mayfair-based firm, Quinlan Private, a €10bn (£8.7bn) real estate empire, was vying with Arab sheikhs and US private equity houses to snap up some of the continent's most prized trophy buildings.īack home in Ireland he was dubbed "King Midas" politicians, lawyers and celebrities ranging from former chat show host Gay Byrne to U2 band members Bono and The Edge queued up to invest in his deals. A t the height of his powers, Irish property tycoon Derek Quinlan was jetting around Europe buying hotels as if skipping across a Monopoly board.
