BELFAST’S high-tech Chichester House is to provide office space to US-based cyber security firm Rapid7, which is set to double its staff numbers to almost 400 in the next two years.
The Boston-headquartered company, which has had a presence in Belfast since 2014, has signed a 10-year lease with Causeway Asset Management as part of its ambitious growth strategy in the north.
Its Belfast home comprises approximately 50,000 sq ft of top quality, modern office space in the city’s central business district following a full redevelopment of the building’s existing six storeys, an extension to the rear and the addition of two new upper floors.
The project by Causeway Asset Management represented an overall investment of £9 million and work on the refurbishment and development of the scheme has just completed.
Rapid7, which operates in 120 countries and has over 9,000 customers worldwide, develops cyber security solutions to reduce risk, stop attacks and assist companies in advancing their security processes.
Rapid7 currently employs roughly 1,500 people globally with an existing team of more than 170 in Belfast.
The company plans to double its workforce inn Northern Ireland by adding 200 new roles in engineering, development and customer advisers.
Damian Mitchell, director at Causeway Asset Management, said: “We have been working with Rapid7 over the last year to create an office space that will work for them in the long term, with the flexibility of scale to accommodate their exciting and ambitious plans for Belfast.
“They have been an excellent team to collaborate with and we have changed several design features during the build process to suit their requirements.
“The completed building is one of the best-connected office spaces in Belfast, the first to be given to a building in Northern Ireland by the internationally recognised commercial real estate rating scheme for digital connectivity.
“We always wanted this office space to be one of the best in the city and wherever Rapid7 lay roots they require the highest level of connectivity possible. We’re very proud to provide a building in Belfast that is recognised as being on a par with other international tech hubs.”
The company's vice president of real estate and workplace experience Jamie Kinch said: “Rapid7 is committed to investing in the company’s global expansion, particularly in areas with impressive technical talent such as Belfast.
“Causeway Asset Management understood our vision and expansion goals and truly partnered with us to develop the right solution for our future success in Belfast.”
Greg Henry, director of agency at Lambert Smith Hampton, who brokered the deal between Rapid7 and Causeway Asset Management, said: “This is one of the largest office deals in Northern Ireland this year, underlining the confidence in the Belfast market both from a commercial and residential perspective.”
