Member Article

Financial services could generate £300 million for North East by 2020

The financial services industry could be worth £300 million to the North East economy by 2020, a report from PwC suggests.

The report, entitled ’Where next for UK financial services? Part 2: Regions of opportunity’ looks at regional scope for financial services growth.

PwC modelling suggests that the North East will gain an extra £300m per annum in 2020, equivalent to 0.56% above baseline.

Gary Shaw, PwC’s North East & Yorkshire financial services leader, commented: “The link between the health of the region’s financial services sector and the health of the overall economy is undeniable.

“As trust is earned and rebuilt, we will hopefully see a return to banks being recognised positively for their role in society and their contribution to the UK economy.

“Given the importance of the regions outside London for driving growth for the rest of the UK, policy makers should explore ways to grow the financial services industry across the UK.

“We are seeing many financial services institutions looking at ways to improve their UK regional footprint, so Government support in the form of offering incentives for financial services businesses looking to locate activity outside of London would be welcomed.

“By encouraging investment across the UK, the FS industry will be able to access a wider pool of resources and at a lower cost than would be possible in London. The benefits in terms of job creation as well as general economic growth will accrue to all regions of the UK. In the longer term the stronger the FS industry across the UK, the better it will be able to maintain its global competitive position.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Tom Keighley .