London top choice for FinTech investment

London has overtaken New York for FinTech investment deals, according to new research based on Pitchbook data released by London & Partners and Innovate Finance, 23 September.

The report, called A Fine Year for FinTech: Global Trends from a UK Perspective explores the FinTech VC-led investment trends so far in 2019, comparing countries and cities around the world, in terms of deal value, deal count and sources of investment.

It suggests 2019 has seen record levels of investment in the UK. In the first eight months of the year alone, more than US$2bn (£1.6bn) has been invested in London-based businesses across 114 deals, surpassing totals seen in any previous year. 

London has has seen the largest number of FinTech deals completed in 2019, with a total of 114, overtaking New York in second place (101). San Francisco is in third place (80), with Beijing (24) and Singapore (23) competing for fourth and fifth.    

The US remains the largest market globally, with $9.37bn raised so far in 2019. 

A country comparison of global FinTech investment by deal value reveals the US in top place ($9.37bn), the UK second place ($29bn), followed by Germany ($998.8m), China ($770.8m) and Sweden ($736.7m)

London leads overall FinTech investment in Europe with $2.11bn investment, followed by Berlin ($881m), Stockholm ($734m), Paris ($330m) and Milan ($49m). 

Out of the ten largest European investments recorded so far in 2019, London-based companies account for half these deals, totalling $1.8bn between them. The UK capital’s FinTech sector is a leading source of high value scale-up companies, with Monzo ($143m) and WorldRemit ($175m) featuring in the lofty ranks of unicorn success stories.  

The UK capital attracts a wider international variety of investors than other European hubs, with 39% of investors coming from outside Europe, compared to 32% in Berlin and Paris with 24%. London also attracts a more diverse international investor mix than North American cities; only 11% of investors in San Francisco came from outside of North America, and 15% in New York. 

Laura Citron, CEO, London & Partners, said: “London is the capital of capital. And as these numbers show, London is innovating to stay ahead, with more FinTech deals than anywhere else in the world. 

“London is the natural home of FinTech because it combines the power of global financial markets with a deep technology talent pool, supportive regulation and an early-adopting customer base. FinTech entrepreneurs in London can meet the regulator in the morning, have lunch with a global bank, hire a top engineer in the afternoon, and enjoy world-class culture in the evening. That convergence is pretty unique.”

Charlotte Crosswell, CEO, Innovate Finance, added: “The UK is the clear global leader in the FinTech sector, spearheaded by London’s success and long-standing position as a major leading financial centre. It’s no surprise London and the whole of the UK FinTech sector is experiencing record growth – we are home to world-class talent and our historical pedigree enables access to key global markets. With record investment under our belt, this is the time to boost the sector further and secure future growth.”  

The release of the research coincides with the opening of Sibos London 2019 (23 – 26 September) one of the world’s leading financial services events. Sibos 2019 marks the first-time this global financial services event has been held in London, and promises to be the biggest conference to date, with over 10,000 delegates. The conference explores the concept of thriving in a hyper-connected world with the challenges, and opportunities brought by mass digitisation and data-driven relationships. 

A Fine Year for FinTech: Global Trends from a UK Perspective.  Published September 2019 by London & Partners & Innovate Finance. The report can be downloaded here.