London Outpaces New York in Fintech Sector, San Francisco Still Ahead of Both of Them

London has overtaken New York in the number and value of deals its Fintech startups were able to raise. This indicates that although London and the UK may not lead the pack when it comes to fintech investment values, the will come pretty close. This is important in the face of a possible “no-deal” Brexit.

It seems that London has overtaken New York in the raising of finance for the global fintech sector or so it seems. According to CNBC, in terms of fundraising deals, the capital of the United Kingdom so far has raised about 114 deals worth about $2.1 Billion while the money City of the United States raised about $1.9 Billion figures show. The startup and venture capital hub San Francisco outpaced both cities with $3 Billion while Brussel in Belgium came a distant fourth with $881 Million and Swedish capital Stockholm with $735 Million.

These figures were released by the promotional office of the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan (London and partners) and Innovate Finance which is the United Kingdom’s umbrella body for fintech companies on a global scale. While London had the highest number of deals, New York had about 101 fintech deals and the California startup haven San Francisco had 80.

London is Going to be Hot Stuff for Global Fintech Post-Brexit

Contrary to speculation by naysayers and the remainers (those who want the UK to remain in the European Union), the incoming data suggests that the United Kingdom will be just fine with London being a global fintech powerhouse and creating jobs that would have left the United Kingdom due to Brexit.

So far, the United States still leads the fintech world in terms of investments in startups. In this year alone, a total amount of about $9.4 Billion has been invested in startups that cover the broad scope that financial technology startups find themselves in.

London is Home to Nine-Figure Fintech Startups

London seems to be receiving attention from global venture capital such as never before. Based on the recent data, the United Kingdom’s capital city is becoming home to some of the world’s biggest fintech startups; many which have a valuation worth Billions of pounds.

From Transferwise which has a total valuation of £2.7 Billion to artificial intelligence-based lending platform Oaknorth which received about $440m in funding from Japanese Softbank Visionfund earlier this year and has a total valuation of £2.2 Billion, the United Kingdom is fast becoming home to some of the world’s largest innovations which are changing the global financial ecosystem.

Laura Citron CEO London and Partners the promotional arm of the office of London’s Mayor said:

“London has always been ahead of the curve and pivotal in embracing new technology and opportunities while pushing the boundaries of an existing ecosystem, to present an even better solution. This is why we’ve seen these outstanding global trends in FinTech. The financial technology sector is diverse, creative, cutting-edge and innovative – these very qualities are shared by London – and Londoners. The report shows London is leading the world in terms of the number of FinTech deals and the investment across Europe. With no signs of slowing down, the FinTech community reflects the unstoppable nature of our city.”

Meanwhile, Charlotte Crosswell CEO of Innovate Finance also contributed:

“The UK is the clear global leader in the FinTech, 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.”

While the US will still lead the fintech world in terms of the book value of investments when it comes to innovation, the United Kingdom might have just taken its place and this will be important post-Brexit.