Cardiff’s new full-fibre network is already beginning to change how firms operate. It was designed to give businesses faster, more reliable digital infrastructure, and what stands out now is how quickly different sectors are putting it to use in ways that directly affect their growth plans.
Nowhere is that more visible than in the media and creative industries. Cardiff has built real strength in this area, supported by major broadcast and production activity, and that creates demand for connectivity that can handle large files and heavy workloads. In the past, some firms faced a difficult choice. Either they paid several hundred pounds a month for a leased line or they tried to work with older copper connections that simply couldn’t keep pace.
Cardiff’s hypercity network is a new full-fibre digital infrastructure built through a £7 million collaboration between Cardiff Council and the Welsh Government. It consists of around 170 kilometres of brand-new fibre running across large parts of the city, providing businesses with a dedicated, state-of-the-art connection capable of delivering symmetrical speeds and scaling up to 10Gbps. Unlike legacy infrastructure, it is a standalone network designed specifically for Cardiff, giving organisations an affordable, modern and reliable alternative to older copper lines or costly leased circuits.
I’ve been working with creative businesses that were looking to relocate and can now contemplate doing so because the new network offers symmetrical speeds at an affordable cost. One company had their connection installed, allowing them to move into a building that would previously have been off-limits to them. It is a straightforward example of how infrastructure can unlock growth.
The fintech sector is responding in a different way but with the same level of interest. Cardiff is home to several online banks and customer contact operations, all of which depend on uninterrupted digital service. They can fund premium links, but what they want is resilience. When a minute of downtime carries a financial penalty, they need more than one route to the internet. What we’re seeing is a clear appetite for a local relationship as part of that resilience strategy. One major online bank we have been working with values the fact that Cardiff now has its own dedicated network, managed within the city rather than through a national system. They use our infrastructure alongside their existing links to legacy providers because they want backups on top of backups. It strengthens their confidence in continuing to expand in the capital.
Professional and financial services firms are also taking advantage of the network in ways that are less visible but equally significant. Many of them simply want reliable connectivity without the cost or delay of commissioning a bespoke line. The new infrastructure gives them a modern alternative and removes some of the uncertainty that previously came with moving premises or opening additional space. They know that the underlying fibre is already in place and that they can increase capacity as their needs change.
A consistent theme across all these examples is that businesses now have options. For years, parts of Cardiff were served by a patchwork of older infrastructure, meaning companies often had to take whatever connectivity was available on a given street. The new network reduces that dependency. It gives the city a dedicated, ten-gig capable system that businesses can treat as a reliable foundation rather than something they have to work around.
That independence matters. Cardiff is no longer limited to the decisions made by national legacy providers. The full-fibre network gives the city an alternative that is modern, locally managed and built with the needs of its businesses in mind. It brings accountability closer to home, which is something firms tell us they value. They want a conversation with someone who understands the local environment, not a distant support line.
Crucially, the network is not reserved for large corporates. It has an affordable entry point that allows any business to join and upgrade over time. That flexibility means startups and SMEs can access the same quality of infrastructure as much bigger organisations, without facing prohibitive costs at the outset. It also means companies can make decisions about growth or relocation based on what is right for them, not based on the limitations of older technology.
The hypercity vision was always about more than faster speeds. It was about giving businesses the freedom to operate on their own terms. The early response from the sectors that drive much of Cardiff’s economy shows that this investment is already doing exactly that.
Awen Evans talks about this and more in the Cardiff Business podcast episode Inside Cardiff’s Hypercity Vision. Listen here.
