About half of the finance companies that have applied for authorization to operate in Ireland due to Brexit are asset managers and investment companies, said the head of IDA Ireland, an agency that promotes investment in the country.

"The vast majority of engagements we've had have translated into authorization applications," Kieran Donoghue told Reuters. "A lot of it is the investment, asset management space. I'd say it could be possibly up to half," he said.

IDA Ireland expects an increase in the number of authorizations by end-2018, as around a dozen firms that engaged with the industry group have already received it and another group in the "single digits" is slated to apply for it by November, Reuters reported.

The Irish central bank governor said Oct. 4 that more than 100 companies have made Brexit-related applications for authorization to operate, both for new legal entities and from existing firms seeking to extend their authorization.