2014 saw a seven-year high in company start-ups.
According to figures published by business and credit risk analyst vision-net dot ie, there were almost 18 thousand company formations in the past 12 months.
While counties Cork, Limerick, Clare, Tipperary, Louth and Wicklow have all seen a rise in the number of start-ups there.
The figures for insolvencies are also down - they fell 7 per cent on 2013 figures, to the lowest numbers in 5 years.
