ITC Global Security has secured GBP1 million funding from Nat West under the Government backed Enterprise Finance Guarantee scheme (EFG). The funds are allocated for investment in the UK as part of a global development plan of GBP 6.3 million over the next three years. ITC have identified significant sources of new business growth, largely attributed to the increased value of the Enterprise Security Infrastructure market, which is forecast to grow to over GBP18 billion (USD 27 billion) by 2013 worldwide, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.2 percent between 2008 and 2013.

To capitalise on these business opportunities ITC will develop its position as a market leader in the cloud computing security arena by introducing a number of new modular services, and extending its global capability. Tom Millar, Managing Director, ITC Global Security comments: "ITC is an established Managed Service Provider (MSP) in a key period of growth. This additional funding enables us to begin the next development phase and expand our UK infrastructure, which is the hub of our operations."

In order to support additional customers and services ITC will increase capacity at their Secure Operating Centre (SOC) based at Canary Wharf, London. This presents new employment opportunities as the expansion plans are expected to create 14 jobs ranging from account managers to technical support and consultancy.

This funding will continue development of its Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) infrastructure. Tom Millar adds: "SIEM is a key high-growth sector, with expected CAGR of 26.8 percent (appliances) and 12.2 percent (SIEM software), and a combined value of over GBP1.5 billion ($2.23 billion) by 2013 worldwide. (Note 2) To strengthen our position we are investing in an additional scalable hardware platform, hosted in a new UK data centre. We have also appointed a manager to lead the internal development and operation of this service."

ITC has initiated a series of changes to reinforce global operations including opening offices in Australia, Canada and Malaysia, and strengthening the senior management team. These initiatives facilitate the 'follow-the-sun' service model across the three main continents, with localised facilities and technical support.

Darren Howard, Relationship Manager at NatWest, said: "The EFG scheme is designed to provide working capital and investment funding to turn sound business propositions into realities despite the current economic climate. ITC sought EFG funding to accelerate the expansion of its business, which is already set to experience growth over their three year plan. I wish them well as they utilise the funding and the opportunities it will present."