Autumn Statement: Tech City UK will deliver new fintech measures
A FINTECH delivery panel and a fintech professional services hub are being developed as part of the government’s measures to support the sector.
Tech City UK, a Shoreditch-based initiative started by former Prime Minister David Cameron in 2010 to support the East London tech cluster known as Silicon Roundabout, will be delivering the two initiatives, it has confirmed.
The delivery panel will focus on industry initiatives, while the professional services hub will help fintech start-ups find legal, accountancy and other professional services that they need in order to enter the market.
The role of Tech City UK will be to identify the key collaborative initiatives that are currently in the pipeline for UK fintech, create a timeline of milestones and deliverables for the fintech sector, and support the community in the delivery of these initiatives.
These measures were originally outlined by former Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Harriett Baldwin, at the Innovate Finance Global Summit in April 2016 following the EY Global FinTech Benchmarking Study and Report which was commissioned by the Treasury.
Chancellor Philip Hammond proved his commitment to the fintech sector in an Autumn Statement by promising a slew of new investment and support systems for innovation and start-ups. These included a pledge to spend £500,000 a year helping to attract investment in the UK’s fintech sector, and an annual ‘State of the UK’ census detailing all the latest developments in the market.
Fintech firms are also expected to benefit from a £2bn government investment in research and development, and a £400m fund to support scale-ups.