CME Group opens technology centre in Belfast
October 10th: CME Group's technology centre was officially opened by First Minister Peter Robinson and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness. CEM will employ 100 people at the state of the art facility in Belfast.

First Minister Rt. Hon. Peter D. Robinson MLA and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness MP MLA officially opened CME Group's new state-of-the-art offices in Millennium House at Great Victoria Street, Belfast.
[L-R] Mark Bennett, Executive Director CME, deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness and First Minister Peter Robinson at the official opening of CME's offices at Millennium House in Belfast.


CME Group offers the widest range of global benchmark products across all major asset classes based on interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange, energy, agriculture commodities, metals, weather and real estate.

Thirty members of staff are currently in place at CME Group's Technology & Support Services centre with an additional 70 employees expected to be recruited over the next year.

The investment in the new centre, announced in January 2012, has been supported by Invest Northern Ireland with further assistance from the Department for Employment and Learning under its Assured Skills Programme.

The First Minister said: 'This state-of-the-art development facility is a fitting home for a company that is at the forefront of the financial services technology sector. CME Group is the kind of high quality inward investor that Invest NI seeks to attract to Northern Ireland in order to help develop a knowledge-based economy with long-term sustainability.'

The deputy First Minister said: 'The financial services technology sector is hugely important to our economy in its potential to create wealth through high value jobs and export focused trading. CME Group's decision to locate here reflects the availability of our talented IT and financial services staff and the high quality, yet cost effective, business environment.'

Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster said: 'This new centre will help deliver a number of benefits to the Northern Ireland economy, not least the creation of 100 first-rate technology roles within the next year and the generation of nearly �400,000 per annum in salaries.'

Employment and Learning Minister Dr Stephen Farry said: 'The establishment of these offices provides tangible proof that the skills needed by world-leading companies are available here in Northern Ireland. My Department’s Assured Skills programme supports companies by providing the skilled workforce that they require. I am greatly encouraged by this investment and I look forward to building our relationship with the CME Group.'

Speaking at the opening, Mark Bennett, Executive Director Software Engineering at CME Group Belfast, said: 'We made the decision to open an office in Belfast this past January to provide our global operations with information technology support. Belfast appealed to us because it has a highly educated and committed workforce within an attractive business environment and is supported by solid telecommunications and transport infrastructures.

'These technology positions range from graduate level to senior and lead software engineers and will help with the software development and programming for our website, market data, order management and other web-based tools our customers and employees use.

'All of these jobs will in some way help our customers to manage their risk and will be vital to our business. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank the Ministers and Invest NI for their support and guidance during our decision making process and all those involved in making today's reception a success.'