When Optiva began scouting locations for its first European Centre of Excellence, the Ontario-based telecom software company had no shortage of options.
On paper, the obvious choice was to go where the talent pools are largest and the global headquarters are clustered: London, Paris, Berlin, Amsterdam. But as the startup dug deeper, one region kept rising to the top for reasons that didn’t fit the usual playbook: Northern Ireland.
“As long as you invest in being part of the ecosystem—not just financially, but as a good citizen—doors are going to open.”
Michael Barton, Invest Northern Ireland
By the end of 2021, Optiva had set up shop in Belfast, drawn by engineering talent, university ties, and a fast-moving software scene.
Within a year, the team had grown to 20 with plans to double.
“We’re not waiting for the future of telecom,” Optiva’s site lead Richard McLaughlin said in a statement on the expansion. “We’re helping to create it—and our Belfast presence is paramount in helping us achieve this.”
That story isn’t unique to Optiva. According to Michael Barton, Regional Director for Canada at Invest Northern Ireland, Canadian firms are taking a closer look at what the region offers, and how it differs from the larger markets that usually top the expansion lists.
“If you’re coming in and building as part of this ecosystem, you’re going to be embraced,” Barton said. “Doors are going to open. It’s built on relationships, and that’s something Canadian founders understand.”
For Canadian tech leaders eyeing Europe, Northern Ireland offers a strategic landing point. It’s not just the lower costs or shared language, or even its close proximity to key markets across Great Britain, Ireland and Europe, according to Barton, it’s the infrastructure, talent, and hands-on support that make scaling easier, faster, and more sustainable.
In most cases, local support starts with Invest Northern Ireland. The agency helps local and international companies navigate tax laws, hiring rules, and makes direct connections to universities, research institutions, and startups.
Those advantages are baked into the region’s infrastructure. Northern Ireland was the first in Europe to achieve 100 percent broadband coverage, and it continues to lead with a fully digital, fibre-optic network. A high-speed, 100-gigabyte-per-second transatlantic and terrestrial link connects Belfast directly to North America and mainland Europe, giving Canadian companies a competitive edge in latency-sensitive sectors like FinTech and AI.
When Canadian founders expand overseas, talent is often the first question, and according to Barton, one of the biggest surprises when they choose Northern Ireland.
Last year, Samsung named Northern Ireland the UK’s future ‘Silicon Valley,’ citing a surge in tech ambition among its youth. With universities like Queen’s University Belfast and Ulster University supplying a steady pipeline of skilled graduates, the region is thriving in sectors like cybersecurity, FinTech, and data analytics, particularly for companies looking to scale engineering or R&D.
“If you come to Northern Ireland, you’re also in a slightly smaller pond, so you can almost become that big fish in that small pond and get access to the same level of talent,” Barton added.
Montréal-based retail giant Lightspeed took notice back in 2020 after acquiring ShopKeep that year, which had previously worked with Invest Northern Ireland to establish a presence in Belfast and tap into the local engineering talent pool.
Today, Lightspeed’s Belfast office is actively expanding, and the company is supporting a growing roster of local customers, including The Drone Factory in Belfast, which uses Lightspeed Retail and eCom to consolidate in‑store and online sales.
“Lightspeed’s now got about 120 people doing development work in Northern Ireland,” Barton said. “They’ve found strong talent here to support their European and UK growth.”
More than 60 percent of new investors reinvest in the region, and venture capital flowing into Northern Ireland has surged 221 percent over the past four years. Belfast, in particular, has become the centre of the region’s tech sector, ranking second in Western Europe for US cybersecurity investment and earning recognition as a top destination for global FinTech investment.
According to Barton, it also means being part of an ecosystem with the business environment of a capital city, without the competition and cost barriers of places like London or Dublin.
“I think the business part is probably more in common with smaller Canadian provinces or cities,” Barton added. “Belfast is a big city in Northern Ireland, but still feels like a small city. It’s very relationship-driven.”
It’s a spirit that shows up in how founders are welcomed, how quickly teams form, and how tightly connected the ecosystem remains. For many Canadians, the region may feel surprisingly familiar, not only because of shared language and close economic ties, but because of something deeper.
“As long as you invest in being part of the ecosystem—not just financially, but as a good citizen—doors are going to open.”
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Invest Northern Ireland is helping Canadian startups build smarter in Europe. Find out how.
Feature image provided by Invest Northern Ireland.