An Irish developed Internet business site has been approved to provide direct online access to Companies House in Britain. This is the first time a third-party organisation has been allowed to avail of the information, which contains details of 1.2 million companies currently registered in Britain.

Known as BusinessGold, it is a new service from IFG Technology and Development, a subsidiary of the IFG Group. Developed at a cost of around £1 million (€1.27 million), the online business service allows users access information on companies, industries, markets, judgments, stocks and news. It features online access to companies' information from Dun & Bradstreet, Financial Times, and ENKI CFI (Company Formations International).

The service which costs an initial £10 per month provides newsfeeds from 12,000 global publications and data can be personalised to the user's requirements.