Three North West firms among UK's 50 fastest growing tech enterprises

Three North West businesses have been named among the country’s 50 fastest growing technology companies.

Manchester-based recruitment tech firm In Touch Networks was top in the region, coming in 18th place in professional services giant Deloitte’s 2017 UK Technology Fast 50.

The annual ranking, now in its 20th year, lists the 50 technology enterprises in the UK with the highest levels of revenue growth over the last four years.

In Touch Networks, which uses technology to improve the process of hiring non-executive directors, consultants and finance directors, achieved 1,572% growth over the last four years. It’s position, at 18th, represents a climb of 21 places since last year.

Cloud services provider Cloud Technology Solutions came in 47th with 510% growth. Fintech company AccessPay, a new addition to the list, ranked 48th with 497% growth. Both are also based in Manchester.

In Touch Networks CEO Matthew Roberts said: “We’re obviously doing something right – we’ve massively increased our growth rate. Memberships have gone through the roof, and we boast a 97% renewal rate year-on-year, which we’re delighted about.

“We’ve seen an opportunity in the US, and done some trial marketing out there, which has been really well received. The market size there is a great lure, yet we haven’t even scratched the surface in the UK – we currently have 17 networks that are in various stages of development.”

He added: “We’ve got an amazing business but the secret to successful growth is keeping things as simple as possible. A lot of companies, as the team gets bigger, add in layers of complexity that aren’t always needed.”

AccessPay CEO Anish Kapoor commented: “The last 12 months has seen the business develop its offering and really embrace innovation in the fintech sector, ensuring we are best placed to adapt – along with our customers – against a fast-changing regulatory backdrop, as well as innovate and grow our offering with market-challenging solutions.

“Having attracted further investment and bolstered our senior team to include some of the sector’s brightest thinkers, we are determined to grow further, especially our BankSense brand and our foothold in the US.”

Claire Jolly, head of technology, media and telecommunications at Deloitte in the North West said of the results: “The North West is once again proving itself to be a key market in the UK technology scene. It’s encouraging to see a new regional entrant to this year’s list, and for both companies that placed last year to have kept up their high growth rates is a great achievement.

“I look forward to seeing North West tech firms build on these successes next year and beyond.”

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