North East England – the perfect location for financial technology companies to locate and grow.
With a strong ecosystem of innovation, access to large fintech market opportunities, an unrivalled network of business clusters, five world-class universities and a highly skilled talent pool, North East England is a brilliant location for FinTech companies to locate and grow.
The region has expertise in open banking, blockchain, mortgages, savings, cyber, fraud tech, boasts several enterprise software development providers who have tech teams embedded in top tier investment banks and SME’s. The region is home to one of the UK’s foremost challenger banks, Atom – with several other banking operations including Virgin Money, Newcastle Building Society and Tesco Bank which call North East England home.
Why FinTech firms choose to locate in North East England
- Established ecosystem of digital businesses playing a pivotal role in the fintech revolution, including Atom Bank, Dialect, Sage, Kani Payments, True Potential, FIS, Newcastle Strategic Solutions, Paynovate, Cascade, Pockit, Singletrack and Donr.
- Five universities with over 68,000 students studying STEM subjects, producing a high-quality talent pool of graduates ready for the workplace.
- A thriving digital cluster and two National Innovation Centres with a global reputation for data science and digital transformation.
- According to the recent North of England Fintech Report by Whitecap Consulting, the North East is a key Northern fintech cluster with 1.11% of the region’s workforce working in a FinTech related role – one of the highest proportions in the North.
- FinPact, the “front door” to the Fintech eco-system in the North East, was created on the back of the Kalifa report (2021), and is focussed on ensuring all aspects of the eco-system are world-class in their content and delivery.
- Quality Grade A office accommodation and innovation hubs such as Newcastle Helix, Sunderland Software Centre, Floe workspace and Salvus House all focussed on growing innovative tech businesses.
- Strong links to FinTech North. The cluster group acts as a hub for Northern England’s fintech ecosystem, helping connect people and ideas, it focuses on supporting and promoting the growth of the financial technology sector outside of London. The organisation supports collaboration, knowledge sharing, and networking among fintechs, financial services firms, startups, investors, regulators, and academia.
Fintech companies choosing to locate in North East England will benefit from a wide range of business support and cluster networks primed to offer guidance and advice across a range of topics. To support a smooth transition to the region, Invest North East England can provide a range of services, including property searches, data on skills and guidance on incentives, as well as making introductions to specialist networks that can offer guidance and links to potential customers, opportunities and research and development support.
