Time for the walking wounded to hobble to the private ward

Three years into the euro and the ranks of the Irish stock market are becoming thinner and thinner. Who's to say that in 12 months' time, the ranks will not have thinned further. Current Account can think of many second and third line stocks that have no place as a plc and we would be done a favour if they were taken private. So who did we lose in the past year? Well for a start, close on half a million people will remember less than fondly the demise of Eircom plc - now that their investment in the company is 30 per cent lighter.

Golden Vale shareholders, however, are probably a happier bunch after the surprise but successful bid from Kerry. Most of the GV shareholders decided to stay with the stock market and the majority took Kerry paper instead of the cash on offer.

Another loss was Athlone Extrusions, taken over by Barlo in a deal that certainly made Athlone shareholders happy. Barlo shareholders might be taking a different view with most in the market believing that Barlo's Tony Mullins paid way over the top for the plastics company.

One hardly-lamented loss was James Crean, taken private by Ray McLoughlin. Crean must rank as one of the biggest riches to rags falls of any Irish plc, so we must wish Ray well in running it as a private company. It was also farwewell to Ire-Tex (who?), Tuskar and Seafield while Reflex decided to foresake the Irish market and instead grace the AIM in London with its presence.

So who's going to follow in their footsteps this year. Hard to say, but for what it's worth here's Current Account's list of the market's walking wounded and living dead whose absence would hardly be missed except by those who get their kicks from bad news stories. For a start, Arcon and Ivernia should merge to create a decent-sized mining group. Sherry Fitzgerald should be taken private - as should recruitment firm, CPL. Marlborough is now in the ranks of the market tiddlers and should go private. But with David McKenna apparently unable to put together a MBO package at the current knockdown price, it will probably take an outside bid to relieve the market of Marlboriugh's presence.

After that we are in the ranks of the walking wounded - the likes of Barlo, Unidare and Oakhill who are unlikely ever to get back to a state where they can provide value to shareholders. IWP is an altogether better company than any of those but the question remains whether Joe Moran will move to buy out an operation he believes is massively undervalued.