UK becomes world’s top fintech hub as startups rake in £4.5bn
The UK is the world’s top fintech hub with high-growth firms attracting more than £4.5bn in investment over three years, it emerged today.
London continues to lead the country in attracting high-growth tech investment, receiving £9bn between 2015 and 2018, followed by Cambridge with £583m, according to a new report by startup body Tech Nation.
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Scaleup firms in the capital grew by more than 56 per cent between December 2018 and February this year, more than anywhere else in the world.
Tech Nation chair Eileen Burbidge said: “The UK has an incredibly pivotal role in the global tech scene.
“Nowhere is this more evident than in the Fintech sector where the UK is ranked number one in the world, an enviable position that has been established with decades of hard work, entrepreneurial talent, innovation and supportive policymakers.
“I’m confident that we have all the ingredients needed for continued success and even greater acceleration of the tech sector here in the UK.”
Total venture capital investment in UK tech topped £6bn last year, more than any other European country, 80 per cent of which was in high-growth businesses.
Read more: London fintechs dominate startup programme as they bid to scale-up
Meanwhile, the UK was fourth in the world overall for scaleup investment, following the US, China and India.
Prime Minister Theresa May said the UK is a “global tech powerhouse”, adding that the companies are “delivering significant economic value to the nation through the investment they raise, the jobs they create, and the innovative products and services they deliver.”