Belfast’s City Innovation Office and colleagues from Belfast City Council’s Economic Development Team are working with Belfast company Xpand who are making it easier for local businesses to find and receive support and finance to help them grow.

Signing up to the new XpandAccess® app provides each business with a view of the latest funding and business support services available across Northern Ireland and the UK. There are over 1,300 finance and support options available including funding, advice, events and webinars.

The app tailors information to the specific needs of each business depending on their industry, type and location. For example, the app can help a business identify a suitable UK funding source to support a project proposal and relevant upcoming events.

Businesses can also receive analysis and reports on their competitors and target market to help identify opportunities to grow their business.

The app also enables organisations providing funding and support to better understand the unique needs of businesses and different industries. We are working with Xpand to gather insights from participating businesses to help inform the design of new support programmes for the city’s growing FinTech sector.

To register on the XpandAccess® app, visit https://access.xpandapp.com/sign-up/belfastfintech

Belfast City Council provides a range of support and information for businesses in Belfast. To find out more, visit www.belfastcity.gov.uk/businessinfo

Man wearing virtual reality headset

Augment the City – £575,000 fund for innovation in immersive tech

Major new funding competition to support local SMEs to innovate in immersive technologies to enhance the visitor experience.

Belfast pioneering new global policy roadmap for the ethical use of smart city technologies

Belfast is collaborating with other leading smart cities and global experts to refine policies in areas such as privacy protection, cybersecurity, open data and digital connectivity.

Homes for Healthy Ageing innovation showcase event

Healthy ageing innovation showcase

Businesses showcased and shared insights on the innovative products and services they trialled in real-world settings through a pioneering healthy ageing testbed in the Markets area of Belfast.