Specialist shows perfect timing in its Dubai move

Mar 6 2008 by Andrew Mernin, The Journal

FAST-GROWING technology firm Onyx Group has entered the rapidly emerging Gulf market by opening an office in Dubai.

The Middlesbrough company already has one client in the Gulf and expects to win deals with multi-nationals and government-owned financial firms in the United Arab Emirates and neighbouring Bahrain.

The group expects its new Middle East operation, which will offer IT security services, will fuel expansion and job creation at its offices in Middlesbrough and Newcastle.

Chief executive Neil Stephenson said: “We realised that we could fly to Dubai as cheaply as going to the centre of London and we also thought the market in London is getting saturated, but there seem to be huge opportunities in Dubai.

“We are interested in highly regulated financial and oil and gas markets and expect there to be a significant number of opportunities out there with multi-nationals and the government.”

Director of international business Sean Allison said the move would take Onyx into one of the most attractive markets in the world.

He said: “Dubai, Bahrain and other GCC countries are rapidly becoming key centres in the world’s financial and banking markets, with Dubai currently lying second to the US in terms of the size of its ICT security requirements.

“Since our first visit to the region in 2007, we have seen a large increase in interest in the services we offer. This has recently been fuelled by the high-profile cases involving data security breaches. Our offices in Dubai are in Emirates Towers, right in the heart of the financial district and an ideal base to do business from.”

Onyx’s move was supported by UK Trade and Investment. Trade adviser Joyce Rawlings said: “Dubai is the 10th largest export market and the excellent air routes which have been developed direct from the region will, we are sure, help that market grow – Onyx is getting established there at a very good time.”

The company’s move to Dubai is the latest milestone in its rapid expansion in recent years in which it has made a number of acquisitions.

Last month the group bought Scottish IT services provider Campbell Lee in a move which boosted its annual sales by millions of pounds to £12m.

Last summer, it created scores of jobs by opening a £2m workplace recovery centre in Newcastle.