Dundalk will receive a jobs boost on Monday when Japanese financial services giant Daiwa Securities introduces plans to employ 300 specialised staff in a new office in the Co Louth town.
The project is seen as something of a coup for IDA Ireland and its chief Seán Dorgan because Japanese companies are perceived as loyal investors that typically adopt a long-term timeframe for their investments.
Daiwa's choice of Dundalk is also in line with the policy of encouraging multinationals to invest in the regions outside Dublin. Minister for Enterprise Micheál Martin and Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern, a local TD, are likely to attend a press conference on Monday to mark the investment.
The scale of Daiwa's financial commitment to the initiative was unclear last night. However, the group is expected to recruit its staff over the next five years.
Daiwa's office at the IDA Park in Dundalk will provide asset and hedge fund management services for Daiwa's extensive operations in the City of London. It will be seeking highly qualified financial specialists for the jobs there.
Daiwa has had an operation in Dublin's International Financial Services Centre since April 1990. As such, it is very familiar with the Irish scene and the incentives available to bring job projects here.
Its branch in Dublin specialises in providing administrative services to hedge funds and other alternative investment style vehicles. The organisation has two Irish-incorporated subsidiaries.
Daiwa Europe Trustees Ireland provides trustee and custodial services to Irish domiciled funds. Daiwa Europe Fund Managers Ireland provides management services for Irish-domiciled funds.
Confirmation of the Daiwa project comes very soon after IDA Ireland reported that 2006 was its best year for net jobs growth since 2000, when the tech-driven boom was at its height.
Employment in IDA Ireland-supported companies rose by nearly 3,800 last year, bringing overall employment in groups supported by the agency to 135,487. Some 11,846 jobs were created but another 8,000 were lost.
Seventy-one new business projects were negotiated, with new and existing companies involving an investment of €2.6 billion in 2007.
More than half the jobs in new IDA Ireland projects in 2006 were reported to have wage and salary levels in excess of €40,000 per annum.
