Think Digital at NASDAQ
11-Sep-2009
Think London, the foreign direct investment agency for London, and NASDAQ OMX will today promote London as a hub for digital and social media opportunities.
The event, a business breakfast, will take place at NASDAQ OMX on the morning of September 14, and will focus on how London is best positioned to drive and leverage digital and social media technologies, and the impact for US companies interested in expanding to London.
Boris Johnson, Mayor of London will speak at the event to acknowledge the key role played by North America as London's primary source of foreign direct investment.
He said “The New York markets house some of the most impressively dynamic companies in the world and is where they go to take innovation and growth to the next level – the same is true for London. Our capital is at a turning point, with opportunities to use its energy, dynamism and diversity to excel as a world beating global city.
"Never before has the timing been more right for American companies to locate here. We have an extraordinary talent in London to develop high-tech and hugely creative industries. I want to build on that reputation to ensure we lead the pack, creating new technologies. In the coming years, London will set the benchmark for successful, sustainable and prosperous large world cities and American companies should have one of the lead roles in this.”
The business breakfast will also feature speeches from Ben Gallop, Head of BBC Sports Interactive, and Carlos Dominguez, Senior Vice-President, Cisco.
The discussions are intended to promote the advancement of digital media technologies amongst the wider business community and explain why London is the premier destination for overseas investment by North American businesses, despite the economic downturn.
Michael Charlton, Chief Executive of Think London, added, “The U.K.’s digital economy is worth $93 billion a year, and it is growing fast. With London already home to a number of digital and social media companies such as Facebook and Google, the city’s status as a global digital hub is expected to grow. London has long been a magnet, and indeed a catalyst, for high growth companies.
"In fact there has never been a better time to invest in London; with a deeper and wider talent pool, lower commercial property costs, and the depreciation of sterling against the dollar, the global recession has opened a window of investment opportunity in London now.”
Over the last decade, Think London has helped more than 1,400 companies from 44 countries set up in London.
Companies that Think London has helped develop their presence in London include North American based digital and social media players such as Bebo, Facebook, LinkedIn, as well as household names such as Microsoft and Google.
View photos from our events
on our Think London flickr pages
About the Mayor of London
Created in 2000, the role of the Mayor of London is to promote economic development and
wealth creation, social development, and the improvement of the environment, in the UK's capital
city. The Mayor chairs several boards that deliver services for London including the transport and
police authorities and sets out plans and policies covering: transport, planning and development,
housing, economic development, regeneration culture, health and the environment.
www.london.gov.uk
About Think London
Think London is the foreign direct investment agency for London. They connect
international businesses to London, helping them set up, succeed and grow. Think London is a
not-for-profit, private-public partnership delivering expertise and advice to international
businesses. The service is completely free, comprehensive and confidential and their experts work
with government and the business community to help companies access the best people, places and
opportunities in the city. Think London’s principal funding partners are the London Development
Agency and a network of Commercial Partners. Other key partners are the City of London Corporation,
which also provides funding, UK Trade & Investment and the business community through London
First.
www.thinklondon.com
About NASDAQ OMX
The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. is the world’s largest exchange company. It delivers
trading, exchange technology and public company services across six continents, with over 3,700
listed companies. NASDAQ OMX Group offers multiple capital raising solutions to companies around
the globe, including its U.S. listings market; NASDAQ OMX Nordic, NASDAQ OMX Baltic, NASDAQ OMX
First North; and the U.S. 144A sector. The company offers trading across multiple asset classes
including equities, derivatives, debt, commodities, structured products and ETFs.
NASDAQ OMX Group technology supports the operations of over 70 exchanges, clearing organizations and central securities depositories in more than 50 countries. NASDAQ OMX Nordic and NASDAQ OMX Baltic are not legal entities but describe the common offering from NASDAQ OMX Group exchanges in Helsinki, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Iceland, Tallinn, Riga, and Vilnius. For more information about NASDAQ OMX, visit www.nasdaqomx.com. NASDAQ OMX has various strategic business lines based in London with 10 listed companies from the UK. Also, NASDAQ OMX’s multilateral trading facility, NASDAQ OMX Europe is based in London. NASDAQ OMX Europe is the first platform to connect European liquidity pools with Pan-European routing. NASDAQ OMX Europe currently trades approximately 900 securities including constituents of the main European indices, ETFs and other highly liquid securities. For more information about NASDAQ OMX Europe, visit www.nasdaqomxeurope.com.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Liam Rose
Sterling Communications for Think London
T: (415) 992-3213
lrose@sterlingpr.com
Elke Heiss
Sterling Communications for Think London
T: (415) 992-3209
eheiss@sterlingpr.com
Watch