UCD FINANCIAL SERVICES CONFERENCE:A UCD-hosted conference aims to explore the challenges and opportunities which lie ahead for Ireland's international financial services sector

The success of Ireland's international financial services sector has been little short of astonishing. Today, its main area - the Irish funds industry - employs more than 9,000 people and is responsible for the servicing of funds with a total value of around €1.8 trillion. It has also been the main driver behind the dramatic redevelopment of Dublin's docklands over the past two decades.

In this context it is hard to believe that the industry barely existed in Ireland just 20 years ago. The initial concept of an Irish international financial services centre is commonly and rightly credited to Dermot Desmond who approached successive Irish governments with the idea in the mid-1980s.

In common with many success stories the initial idea was incredibly simple. It was to extend the same tax breaks enjoyed by overseas manufacturing firms based in Ireland to the international financial services sector. To qualify for the tax breaks they would have to locate in a specific area of Dublin's docklands, which became known as the International Financial Services Centre (IFSC), or to commit to locating there whenever space became available. This brought the added bonus of much needed investment in Dublin's inner city.

Of course, there was more to it than that. A lot of work also had to be done by the Department of the Taoiseach and others to make Ireland a competitive location for fund management and administration and other internationally trade financial services activities.

In some ways, the past 20 years can be regarded as the first phase of activity in the sector - IFSC 1.0 so to speak. And in this context Ireland is now standing on the cusp of the second phase. The UCD Quinn School of Business and the UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate School of Business have come together to host a seminar on this issue.

IFSC 2.0 - The Next Phase will be held in the Institute of Bankers on Dublin's North Wall Quay near the IFSC on Wednesday, March 5th and will explore the key success factors and future opportunities for financial services in Ireland. It will also explore if the IFSC can continue to evolve and stay competitive in a more globally challenging market place.

A panel of leading international experts will discuss these issues and the event will be chaired by John Travers, former Forfás chief and currently executive director of the Global Finance Academy at UCD School of Business.

"This is the third in a series of seminars addressing subjects of national importance that we are holding," Travers explains.

"We have already had seminars on social partnership and issues affecting the Irish construction sector and now we are having this one."

"We chose the IFSC as a subject for a number of reasons, including the usual rhetorical ones such as the huge success of the industry over the past 20 years since the days of Dermot Desmond and so on," says Travers. "But the driving force for the continued growth of the industry worldwide is the skills of the people who work in it.

"Micheal Bloomberg in New York commissioned some research recently which indicated that the quality of the people available to work in the industry was a key differentiating factor in its success."

UCD, of course, has a particular interest in this. "UCD along with the Institute of Bankers has been the main driving force in providing the graduates to work in the industry up until now," Travers points out.

The seminar itself will provide a platform for a number of Irish and international speakers to give their perspectives on the financial services sector in Ireland and globally.

The impressive line-up of speakers includes the secretary general of the Department of the Taoiseach, Dermot McCarthy, who chairs the Clearing House Group.

"This group includes representatives of government, the state agencies like IDA and the industry itself and focuses on maintaining the correct environment for the continued growth and success of the industry here."

The keynote speech will be given by John P Sievwright, senior vice president, Merrill Lynch. "One of the issues he will be talking about is his perspective on the global financial markets at present and the lessons and implications of those events for Ireland," says Travers. "He has particular expertise in relation to the Irish situation as he is a member of the American Board of the Smurfit School."

Also bringing an international perspective will be Kjell Nyborg of the Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration. Over the last few years, the main focus of his research has been on financial auctions and on the effect of taxes on project valuation and the cost of capital. He has also written papers on convertible bonds, capital structure and bankruptcy. His most recent research includes work on liquidity in financial markets and this will be of particular relevance to the seminar.

Joining these speakers will be Dr Alan Ahearne of Department of Economics in NUI Galway.

Prior to coming to Galway, Dr Ahearne was a senior economist at the Federal Reserve Board in the US where his duties included preparing notes for and presenting briefings to legendary Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan and other board governors.

Bank of New York executive vice president Brian Ruane will also give his perspective current events on global financial markets.

Of particular interest to many attendees will be the presentation by Patrick Neary, chief executive of the Financial Regulator, which is responsible for the regulation of the Financial Services industry, both from a prudential and a conduct of business viewpoint.

"Good regulation is hugely important in terms of giving credibility to the industry," says Travers.

"It has to be flexible enough to allow product innovation, but it also must be strong enough to give people confidence in the industry. There is a balance to be struck between national regulators and a possible need for international regulation and this will be explored at the seminar."

Travers also points out that the whole innovation agenda needs to be pursued by the industry in Ireland. "The industry is very fast moving," he points out.

"It tends not to like the word research and uses innovation instead. But we in the academic sector need to align our research efforts to the needs of the industry both to assist in new product innovation and to produce the people with the skills needed by the industry in the future."

For more information or to register for the seminar, go to www.ucd.ie/ifsc