Citi’s new Global Research, Development, Innovation and Learning Centre in Dublin

IDA Ireland, today (Wednesday 30th September 2009) welcomed the official opening by Citi, the leading global financial services company, of its new Global Research, Development, Innovation, and Learning (RDIL) Centre at its offices in Dublin. The US$24 million investment, 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$100 million.

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.

Barry O’Leary, CEO of IDA Ireland, congratulating the company, said “Citi will be celebrating its 45th year of investment in this country next year. 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 Mr. O’Leary.

He continued “Innovation is the theme at the heart of IDA’s major new marketing campaign promoting Ireland as a destination for foreign direct investment and is designed to position Ireland as the pre-eminent location for companies who are seeking to invest in future innovation - this Citi RDIL Centre is an excellent example of what is being targeted. The campaign is built around Ireland’s talented workforce and the part it can play in making innovation happen. Its theme is Ireland's ability to supply the fresh thinking and creativity which innovation needs to flourish.”

Mr. O'Leary continued “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.”

Ireland’s commitment to RD&I, particularly through the driving forces of the Government and IDA Ireland, has resulted in an international reputation as a highly successful European location for RD&I at the leading-edge of all industry and business sectors, including International Financial Services.  This reputation has resulted in an increasing number of international companies locating significant and critical RD&I activities at their Irish operations in recent years.

About Citi
Citi has approximately 200 million customer accounts and 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. Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com or www.citi.com.

For further information please contact –
Brendan Kenny, Press & PR Officer, IDA Ireland  Tel: 087 903 6126