The Bank’s commitment to supporting digital enterprise makes it a natural partner for the representative body

Ireland’s dedicated e-business representative body, Digital Business Ireland (DBI), and one of the country’s leading financial services providers, PTSB, have today announced a renewal of their partnership for the forthcoming year. Through the partnership, PTSB will provide programme funding to support Digital Business Ireland, as it continues to work in tandem with its membership, to help businesses grow, scale and digitally transform, post-pandemic.

The ongoing collaboration between PTSB and Digital Business Ireland will enable the representative body to further grow its extensive network of over 6000 members and provide an enhanced suite of supports and opportunities to its network. These include its complimentary advisory services, training events, and its annual National Digital Awards programme, set to launch next month on October 4th, of which PTSB is the title sponsor. Leveraging Digital Business Ireland’s network enables PTSB to further support local Irish businesses, against a backdrop of increasing digitisation, and a rapidly growing domestic ecommerce market.

Throughout the last year, PTSB and DBI worked together to deliver supports for Irish Business, including:

• 800 businesses received training on digital strategy which helped them to turbo-charge their online growth;
• More than 300 businesses entered the PTSB Digital Business Ireland Digital Awards, with 26 winners and runners-up spotlighted across three categories; Website, Innovation and People;
• 5 bricks and mortar businesses were able to pivot their business to a digital sales channel through support from PTSB;
• Thousands of SMEs received additional advice and support, through collaboration with 10 Digital Business Ireland affiliate membership bodies; and,
• The Click Green, Buy Nearby campaign was launched to encourage consumers to purchase from Irish businesses during November and December 2020.

Speaking today, Secretary General of Digital Business Ireland, Lorraine Higgins, said: “As a keen supporter of digital enterprise, PTSB is a natural partner for Digital Business Ireland. Over the last year, we have enjoyed a close relationship, working together to deliver on our shared objectives of helping Irish businesses to thrive in the digital economy, and realise their online ambitions which extend beyond Ireland. This most recent renewal of the partnership is further testament to our joint dedication to achieving these objectives”.

“Through its ambitious digital transformation programme, PTSB has solidified itself as a leader in digital, and demonstrated its commitment to supporting businesses at every level, throughout the country – values which align with those of Digital Business Ireland. PTSB’s consistent support has facilitated us in continuing to provide an extensive suite of supports to our membership and their title sponsorship of our annual National Digital Awards programme has allowed us to showcase and celebrate the very best of digital business in Ireland. Through the partnership, Digital Business Ireland also offers complimentary membership to all PTSB business customers, each of whom can benefit from our range of exclusive online advisory services and gain access to our fulsome calendar of training opportunities, networking events, and digital conferences”.

Speaking to the partnership renewal, Mags Brennan, Head of Business Banking at PTSB said: “PTSB is delighted to renew our partnership with Digital Business Ireland. DBI is the voice of the Irish digital commerce sector and we continue to work closely with DBI in helping businesses ready themselves for digital transformation to operate more efficiently and effectively in an ever changing business market in Ireland. From a PTSB perspective, we also understand the importance of digital for our own customers and are working hard to continue to develop digital solutions for them. We are proud to partner with an organisation as respected as DBI, which is growing its membership base and has great plans to celebrate everything that is good in the digital world”.