Momentum in indigenous Irish tech continues, notes head of Tech, Media and Telecoms Sector at Bank of Ireland Paul Swift.
“All indicators suggest we will see further growth and momentum through the end of this year and well into the New Year”
Tech sector performance to date
We have seen strong activity across each of the subsectors so far this year, significantly up on the same period last year, largely driven by the following:
- Continued digitisation and digitalisation of every sector.
- Customer feedback is upbeat, with a positive outlook for 2023, despite the wider challenges presented by the crisis in Ukraine and spiralling energy costs.
- Increased cyber threats and the pandemic have resulted in many businesses choosing to outsource their entire information technology (IT) function.
- Continued consolidation in the market as providers seek to either acquire new technology capability, new customers, broaden their geographic footprint or a combination of all of the above.
In summary all indicators suggest we will see further growth and momentum through the end of this year and well into the New Year.
Technology Ireland launches its new strategy
“Making Ireland a Global Technology Powerhouse)” is a new four-year strategy (2022 – 2026) for the technology sector.
It outlines key recommendations for Government, while highlighting priority areas that need to be addressed by industry, public sector institutions and policymakers. Not surprisingly, a constant and frictionless supply of talent is the number one pillar of this strategy.
Talent and access to same has been a critical ingredient to Ireland’s recent success. A range of initiatives are planned to maintain a sustainable pipeline.
Other pillars include advocating for an evidence-based approach to regulation; championing of the sector in terms of raising its profile and its value to the economy; facilitating ESG leadership, advocating for the sector regarding climate action and supporting entrepreneurial SME’s. Each of these pillars will be backed up by a range of initiatives to achieve its vision of becoming a technology powerhouse in the years ahead.
Seed/early-stage fund investments
Over recent months we have seen further investments announced by Delta Partners, in which Bank of Ireland is a cornerstone investor. These include:
- LegitFit, a Cork-based provider of management software for gym providers and fitness studios, who closed a €1m seed round, led by Delta Partners. LegitFit are on a mission to empower fitness entrepreneurs.
- NoFrixion, a Dublin-based Fintech that is revolutionising business payments, who closed a €3.6 million funding round led by Delta Partners and Middlegame Ventures and were joined by Furthr VC. Their mission is to enable money to move instantly – to make it easy to pay and get paid using a proven process called “Experiential Payments”.
- Dimply, a Dublin-based Fintech that closed a €2m seed round led by Delta Partners. that have created a platform empowers financial services enterprise customers to deliver rich, personalised experiences, based on actionable data insights.
- ProMotion, a Dublin-based consumer rewards company closed a €725,000 pre-seed round led by Laidlaw Scholars Venture with participation from Delta Partners. ProMotion Rewards allows consumers to photograph their receipts, complete surveys and enter competitions via a dedicated app, earning points when they participate.
Upsurge in fraudulent text and phone scams
Bank of Ireland has in recent days had to issue a warning to customers that were being targeted by fraudsters trying to pressure them into handing over their bank details.
There was notable increase of around 40% detected by the bank’s fraud prevention team in the previous two weeks when compared to the previous month. The tactic being used has seen those targeted first receiving a fraudulent, bank-branded text message asking customers to expect a call, which is then backed up by a phone call to try and convince customers of their bona fides and to obtain their bank details.
The advice for customers is to be extremely vigilant if they receive a call claiming to be from the bank or other financial institution. Irrespective of what they are being told, be safe do not disclose personal or bank account details. Similarly, do not click on links in the text message.
