Investment boom turns London into fintech capital of Europe

The study by global management company Accenture, showed that over the past three years, such investment increased at more than four times the rate of overall venture-capital investment. 

The UK and Ireland (UKI) is the fastest growing region in fintech investment, growing at a 74 per cent rate since 2008, compared with 27 per cent globally and 13 per cent in Silicon Valley. 

As a result of this rapid growth, London has emerged as the fintech capital of Europe, according to the report.

“The fintech boom is a huge opportunity for London with its well-developed financial and technology industries,” said Julian Skan, Accenture managing director.

“It is also crucial to London maintaining its position as the leading global financial center because of the growing importance of technology to the financial industry.”

While fintech investment in UKI is growing fast, the market however is still relatively immature, said the report.

Skan added: “For a relatively new sector, fintech is developing fast. There are growing number of incubators and accelerators and increasing interest among both the big banks and the venture capital community.

“But there are still challenges to overcome. It is harder to raise funding, and entrepreneurs are less focused on commercialising new ideas than in the US. It is also difficult for small entrepreneurial companies to gain entry to big global banks.”

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