US insurance giant Aflac has created 65 jobs in Belfast in its first year.
The Georgia-headquartered company, which employs 11,000 globally, last year announced an Invest NI-backed plan to set up a new technology centre in the city, creating 150 jobs over three years.
Aflac specialises in covering the additional costs incurred by people undergoing medical treatment, with around 50 million customers are principally based in the US and Japan.
Invest NI, which first approached the company in 2016, has offered the US group around £1m for its move to Belfast.
Initially setting up in River House on Belfast’s High Street, Aflac has now relocated to Belfast Harbour’s City Quays 2 building, where it has signed a ten-year lease.
The group yesterday marked its first year in Belfast with a virtual event.
Head of Aflac’s NI operation, Keith Farley said: “We have painted the words ‘resilient, reinventive and adaptable’ on our office walls because that is the experience we have had in Northern Ireland, particularly as we initiated our program here immediately prior to a global pandemic.
“Belfast has quickly become a part of the Aflac story, and we hope to play a part in Belfast’s story in return. We’re proud of our achievements in our first year – and we’re only getting started.”
Economy Minister Diane Dodds, who took part in yesterday’s virtual event, said: “Despite these extraordinary global economic challenges, Aflac NI have made considerable achievements in a short space of time.
“These achievements, along with their recruitment ambitions and the talent they have already employed through the assured skills academies, demonstrate just how attractive Belfast and Northern Ireland is as a highly-competitive destination for investment.”
Aflac's executive vice president, Virgil Miller, said: “We’re pleased with the exceptional progress and success so far in Belfast and delighted with how well our teams are working on a global basis, delivering exceptional technical solutions that directly benefit our growing customer base.
“Our people and our culture are important to us, and with the local team we have on board in Belfast, we are confident that we made the right decision to invest in Northern Ireland.”
