More than 55 firms, including Bank of America and Morgan Stanley, confirmed new or expanded operations in Ireland during 2018, the IDA said in its annual report.

In October the agency said asset management and investment firms made up about half of the more than 100 finance companies that had applied to set up or extend operations in Ireland as a result of Brexit.

Britain is due to leave the EU on March 29 this year. It is still trying to agree with the EU the terms of the divorce and will only begin negotiations on a future trading relationship after Brexit.

Foreign investors backed by the IDA created a total of 14,000 jobs in Ireland in 2018, up from just over 10,000 the previous year, the agency said.

Foreign firms employed around 230,000 people in Ireland in 2018, the agency said, approximately 10 percent of the country's workforce.

(Reporting by Conor Humphries; Editing by Gareth Jones)