Study shows rise in number of high-growth firms in the North

Northern Ireland was the only region bar Scotland in the UK to show evidence of a rise in high-growth business, with revenues between £2.5 million and £100 million last year, new research shows today.

The study, carried out by banking giant Barclays and the Business Growth Fund (BGF), examined entrepreneurial activity across all sectors and regions in the UK.

It shows that the number of active companies in the UK increased by 3.7 per cent in the second half of 2014 to form almost 3.1 million companies which represents the second highest rise in the past three years.

According to the study both the financial crisis and the economic downturn which cost many people their jobs also inspired more entrepreneurs to start their own businesses.

The latest Entrepreneurs Index highlights that the proportion of high-growth companies in the North increased by 5.5 per cent in the 12 months to March 2014.

It found there were a total of 67,000 business enterprises and the technology sector was one of the fastest growing.

The results echo the recent Knowledge Economy Index, commissioned by the Northern Ireland Science Park, which detailed that the number of local technology startups had jumped to a total of 295 and that more than 35,000 people were employed in knowledge based businesses.

The Barclays/BGF creates a snapshot of entrepreneurship in the UK by analysing the journey from start up to growth and the point of liquidity at which wealth is created.

According to Jonathan Dobbin, head of Barclays wealth and investment management in the North, there is no shortage of entrepreneurial talent locally but it needs the right environment to flourish.

Mr Dobbin said: “It is now important that business and policy-makers in Northern Ireland capitalise upon this opportunity and focus on ways in which they can support the business community to allow them to grow and unlock their true potential which in turn will benefit the local economy.”

One aspect that the latest Barclays/BGF Entrepreneurs Index highlights specific to Northern Ireland is that “number of partial or full sales of companies that resulted in at least £0.2m of individual wealth creation fell by 8.3 per cent in 2014”.