Analyses & Studies

fDi’s European Cities and Regions of the Future 2020/2021

Dublin ranks #3 in the European Cities of the Future

Dublin, Ireland’s capital and largest city, comes in third out of all European cities surveyed and attracted the third highest number of FDI projects. Between October 2014 and September 2019, the city received 543 investments, almost one-third of which were in business services; more than one-quarter were in sales, marketing and support functions and almost one-fifth were in headquarters operations. Almost one-third of Dublin’s inward FDI projects recorded during this time were expansions or co-location projects, reinforcing its status as a centre for reinvestment and contributing to its third place in the Business Friendliness category for major cities. In April 2019, jobs search engine Indeed (a subsidiary of Japan-based Recruit Holdings) announced plans to create 600 new jobs at its EMEA headquarters in Dublin by 2024. Moreover, in June of the same year, US-based business networking company LinkedIn revealed it was hiring an extra 800 staff at its hub in the city (...) 

Dublin’s record year

Dublin Region comes second in the overall ranking of European regions and is first in the small regions classification. The region experienced year-on-year growth in inward FDIgenerated jobs and investment between 2014 and 2018, with a record $5.43bn investment and 12,393 jobs from inward FDI projects in 2018, the highest amount since fDi Markets’ records began in 2003. These results greatly contributed to the region topping the small regions’ Economic Potential category. Dublin Region also excelled in the category’s per capita data points, attracting both the highest number of inward FDI projects and the highest number of mega-projects by capital expenditure per 100,000 people. Dublin Region is crowned the best small region for Business Friendliness largely because investors benefit from a 12.5% corporation tax rate and can start a business in just five days. This investorfriendly climate is demonstrated by the fact that Dublin Region attracted the most expansion and co-location projects per 100,000 people out of all regions studied. Of the companies that cited a motive for their investment in the region between October 2014 and September 2019, 49.1% were influenced by the availability of a skilled workforce, 28.1% by its regulatory environment and 26.3% by technology and innovation (...)

Galway, a harbour city on Ireland’s west coast, has been awarded the top prize for FDI Strategy in the micro cities classification. Galway City Council has a dedicated three-person economic development unit, in addition to the Galway Local Enterprise Office, which houses a further five staff supporting start-up indigenous businesses through microfinance and mentoring. Galway is recognised as a one of the top five global hubs in the medical technology sector, with companies including Boston Scientific, Medtronic, Covidien, Merit Medical and Allergan establishing a presence in the city. The Regenerative Medicine Institute was established in collaboration with NUI Galway in 2004 and has received €47m in grants for pioneering research initiatives for 36 research projects involving more than 200 researchers. The city is also home to 90 ICT companies, including Hewlett Packard, IBM, Oracle, Avaya, Nortel, Cisco, SAP, EA and Fidelity. Four of the world’s top five ICT companies have a base in Galway. The city’s Insight Centre for Data Analytics is a joint initiative between researchers at Dublin City University, NUI Galway, UCC, UCD and other partner institutions. It brings together more than 400 researchers, over €100m in funding, and more than 80 industry partners, to position Ireland at the heart of global data analytics research. Galway is also famously creative, hosting events such as the Galway Arts Festival, and has been named the European Capital of Culture for 2020. The Irish Development Agency (IDA) supports inward investors wishing to invest significantly in Galway through property and land acquisitions, the management of industrial parks and tax relief. Funding and grants are also available to those considering FDI in Ireland, which are negotiated on a case-by-case basis in compliance with EU and Irish legislation.

For more information, you can download the whole document and get the rankings here: 

fDi European Cities and Regions of the Future 2020-21 2.53 MB

Source: https://www.fdiintelligence.com/Locations/Europe/fDi-s-European-Cities-and-Regions-of-the-Future-2020-21-Winners