US investment firm Peak6, which acquired Dundalk Football Club two years ago, is to create 160 jobs in Belfast over the next four years.
The move comes as the Chicago-headquartered company announced plans to create a centre of excellence in the city.
Invest Northern Ireland is providing £1.04 million in support towards the new jobs. It said the new roles would contribute over £8.5 million in additional annual salaries to the local economy.
"The Belfast team will innovate industry-specific technology solutions that will enable transformation across our companies and focus on the research, development and delivery of new products to help us achieve our ambitious growth plans," said Judi Hart, chief operating officer at Peak6.
Peak6 was founded by Jenny Just and Matt Hulsizer in 1997. It uses proprietary technology to make the options market operate more efficiently.
Among the companies it owns are Apex Clearing, Evil Geniuses, and National Flood Services. It also has a 25 per cent stake in Bournemouth Football Club.
"This major investment by Peak6 is welcome news as we work to rebuild our economy. Northern Ireland is a leading location for international technology investment," said Economy Minister Diane Dodds.
“Our strength in financial technology, cloud solutions and emerging areas such as artificial intelligence and machine learning continues to attract businesses to invest here and capitalise on our growing expertise to help them grow their businesses.”
