Racing tycoons John Magnier and JP McManus were among the biggest beneficiaries of a £363.5m (€450m) dividend paid to investors in Barchester, the care home group now struggling with debt.
Other Irish shareholders include Denis Brosnan, the former chief executive of Kerry Group.
The healthcare company, which owns 200 homes and has 10,000 residents, has opened talks to refinance loans totalling £900m taken on during the credit boom.
The talks threaten to drag the industry back into the spotlight after the collapse last year of Southern Cross, a rival care home operator in the UK.
Barchester’s debt problems stem from a deal six years ago to split in two. One part of the group owns its property assets and the other runs the care homes and pays rent to the property arm. At the time of the split, the company paid hundreds of millions of pounds in dividends “as part of the restructuring”.
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As big shareholders, McManus and Magnier would have received a large chunk of the payout. A source close to Barchester said that the dividend payments were justified because it was the first time in 13 years that shareholders had taken money out of the business.
The source said the talks would have no impact on the homes, because the loans are attached to the property company, while the operating company is ring-fenced from financial obligations.
The talks are aimed at extending the loans beyond October 2013 but are likely to lead to increased interest payments.