London And UK Tech Firms Gain Record Investment Despite Brexit Looming
However, London appears to be taking more than the lion’s share of investment from the rest of the UK
Despite the threat of disruption from Brexit, the start of 2017 has seen record levels of investment into the UK’s and particularly London’s technology companies.
According to the May of London’s promotional agency London & Partners, venture capitalists have pumped a more than £1.1 billion into London’s technology sector over the past six months, with a total of £1.3 billion going to tech companies across the UK between January and June.
The investment has been four times that of 2013’s investment and beats the levels hit for the same six month period for the past decade.
London calling VC tech investment
The levels of investment, according to London & Partners, is indicative of the appetite venture capitalists have for the capital’s technology companies. The agency cited the example of virtual reality startup Improbable receiving £388 million as an example of investment into London’s innovative tech firms.
London & Partners also boasted that the capital has received more than double the venture capitalist investment than that of second nearest city Berlin, which has seen £775 million in investment since the UK voted to leave the European Union.
“London remains Europe’s leading hub for global investors. The Brexit vote has understandably created some uncertainty but it is no surprise to see that London continues to attract more than double the amount of investment than any other European city,” said Laura Citron, CEO of London & Partners.
“The fundamental strengths of London as a centre for technology and business have not changed and we have everything companies need to be successful: policy makers, finance, infrastructure, world-class universities and talent. This year’s record investment levels show that London’s tech sector continues to thrive and remains open to investment from all over the world.”
This is all positive news for London, but it is worth noting that the capital’s global influence, cultural diversity, and a favoured location for major technology companies to base their European headquarters, gives it a significant advantage over other cities.
The rest of the UK appears to have only receives around £200 million in venture capitalist investment, this is despite the government’s championing on the Norther Powerhouse and technology hubs in the likes of Newcastle, Manchester, Bristol and Cardiff.
So while London appears to be in a solid position to weather the effects of Brexit, there is a still a good chunk of uncertainty as to what effect it will have on the rest of the UK, particularity those areas beyond the sphere of direct influence Britain’s, and arguably the world’s capital.
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