Out of the three countries to have received EU bailouts – Ireland, Portugal and Greece – Ireland is the only one to have enjoyed an increase in recorded FDI since the financial crisis began in 2008. Data from greenfield investment monitor fDi Markets shows that Ireland recorded 77% more projects in 2011 than it did in 2007. Conversely, Portugal recorded 63% fewer projects in 2011 compared to 2007 and Greece recorded 20% fewer.

In 2007, Ireland's financial services sector enjoyed a significant level of investment from UK-based banks, including Royal Bank of Scotland and its subsidiary Ulster Bank. Since the financial crisis, however, investment from such UK-based institutions has decreased. In 2011, a number of investments from US-based banks such as Citigroup and Bank of NY Mellon helped Ireland's FDI levels recover. Fund administrators and financial consultancies have also helped plug the gap left by UK-based institutions, with Switzerland-based deVere Group and global hedge fund administrator HedgeServ both investing in Ireland.

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The growing levels of investment in Ireland’s software and IT sector have also helped bolster the country's FDI levels. Again, it is the US-based firms that have invested most heavily. Online auction site Ebay, search engine Google and social networking site Twitter have all all established or expanded their presence in the country.

Before the financial crisis, in 2007, Greece experienced FDI investment across a diverse range of industries, but particularly in the energy sector. In the same period, Portugal attracted a broad range of investments, with companies such as Finland-based communications corporation Nokia, Spain-based bank Santander and France-based automotive company PSA Peugeot-Citroën all investing in the country.

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