Pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly has said it chose Cork as the location for its new European financial services centre because of the company's track record here over the past 30 years.
IDA Ireland beat off competition from a number of other European locations for the project, which is expected to create 100 new jobs over the next year.
The company's Senior Finance Director for European Shared Services, Kay Flynn, said Cork was chosen because of the availability of a skilled workforce, language ability and the presence of a strong shared services base in Ireland.
The financial services centre will be located in Cork city and most of the new staff will be recruited before the end of March 2011.
Eli Lilly already employs more than 4,000 people at a manufacturing plant near Kinsale in Co Cork.
Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation Batt O'Keeffe said the company's decision to expand in Cork was an endorsement of the academic calibre of the local labour pool and the quality of its third level institutions.
