Overview

Gender

male

Denis O’Brien is an Irish entrepreneur who is recognised for his many achievements in the telecommunications sector. He is the chairman and founder of the privately-owned Digicel Group, one of the fastest-growing mobile operators in the world. Denis founded Digicel in 2001 when the company launched a GSM phone service in Jamaica. Since its launch, the company has expanded operations to 25 countries throughout the Caribbean and Central America. In 2020, the company rebranded as a digital operator and offers its customers a fully digital experience through its suite of apps.

With extensive investments across several sectors including international telecoms, radio, media, property and aircraft leasing, Denis is one of Ireland's leading entrepreneurs. In 1989, he founded Communicorp Group, which owns and manages media and broadcasting companies in Ireland and eight other European countries. He sold this company in 2021. The following year, he co-founded Esat Telecom, which became the second-largest provider of telecommunications in Ireland prior to its sale to British Telecom. Denis is also the owner of Quinta do Lago resort in Portugal, PGA Catalunya golf resort in Spain and the Beacon Hospital in Ireland.

In addition to his entrepreneurial pursuits, he has long held a strong focus on improving the communities in which he does business. From this, Denis supports many philanthropy projects dedicated to improving education, access to the internet and supporting those with special needs through his Digicel Foundation. Additionally, Denis created the Iris O’Brien Foundation in honour of his late mother to provide support to organisations that advocate rights for the individual. He also co-founded Front Line Defenders, an award-winning human rights organisation that advocates for the protection of human rights defenders at international, regional and local levels. Furthermore, Denis sits on the board of multiple foundations, including Concern Worldwide and the Haiti Action Network, and serves as Chairman on the Special Olympics Ireland’s Council of Patrons.

Denis has been recognised by multiple organisations for his entrepreneurial and philanthropic endeavours. He received the Ireland Entrepreneur of the Year Award from Ernst & Young in 1998 for his business ventures and was a featured guest on the organisation’s Architects of Business YouTube series. Denis has also been acknowledged for his recovery work in Haiti following the 2010 earthquake and other natural disasters, earning the Clinton Global Citizen Award from the Clinton Foundation and the National Order of Honour and Merit from the Republic of Haiti. Denis was also named a Goodwill Ambassador by the City of Port-au-Prince. In 2019, he won the Award for Outstanding Achievement from the Ireland-US Council for his philanthropic efforts. In 2022, he was presented with the Princess Grace Humanitarian Award from the Ireland Funds Monaco branch and was inducted into the Irish American Hall of Fame at the annual Business 100 awards.

Denis received his bachelor’s degree in Politics and History from University College Dublin (UCD) in 1977 and earned his MBA at Boston College in 1982. He has donated to both of his alma maters, establishing the O’Brien Centre of Science at UCD and endowing the Denis O’Brien Fellowship for Irish students at Boston College’s Carroll School of Management. Denis has also made contributions to campus infrastructures, scholarships and educational programmes at Trinity College Dublin and Dublin City University.