Financial power house Citi, which has more than 200 million customers worldwide, is to invest €24m in a new R&D operation in Dublin that will unleash future generations of banking and payment technologies and experiences.
The US$24-million investment in Citi’s new Global Research, Development, Innovation and Learning (RDIL) Centre, supported by Government through IDA Ireland, will lead to the creation of the next wave of financial products and solutions for the financial services industry, specifically a next-generation intelligent payments solution.
This investment brings Citi’s total investment in R&D in Ireland to US$100m.
The RDIL Centre is Citi’s only dedicated R&D facility worldwide. As a result of this latest investment, the number of employees involved in R&D will reach 100 by the end of 2010, comprising research specialists, analysts and technologists.
“Citi will be celebrating its 45th year of investment in this country next year,” Barry O’Leary, CEO of IDA Ireland, explained. “Demonstrating its leadership in the financial services world, Citi was the first global financial institution to establish an operations centre of significant scale in Ireland.
“It currently makes a major contribution to Ireland, employing around 2,000 people. With such a significant presence in Dublin’s IFSC, Citi is a flagship company for international financial services in Ireland and is an excellent reference for IDA Ireland in its international marketing.”
“The RDIL Centre will further contribute to Ireland’s reputation as a leading European location for next-generation research, development and innovation (RD&I). And innovation is what will make the difference to Ireland’s goal of becoming a knowledge-driven and Smart Economy. Ireland, having a central position in Europe, has helped us attract high-calibre investments from leading global companies in recent years. Approval for the Lisbon Treaty will further enhance Ireland’s position as a leading location in Europe for foreign direct investment from all industry and business sectors,” said O’Leary.
“In today’s extremely competitive world, business people are agreed that innovation is the primary source of sustainable competitive advantage. Ireland’s unique innovation ecosystem – founded on the creativity and skills of its workforce, a knowledge-based economy and pro-business government policy – has made Ireland a uniquely attractive environment in which to foster innovation,” O’Leary added.
Citi does business in more than 140 countries.
Through its two operating units, Citicorp and Citi Holdings, Citi provides consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, and wealth management.
By John Kennedy
Photo: Citi is to invest €24m in a new R&D operation in Dublin.
