Leeds’ “thriving” fintech sector provides £700m boost to local economy

A new report from Whitecap Consulting shows the fintech sector in the Leeds City Region has experienced “huge” growth over the last three years, is now home to more than 100 fintech firms and is contributing more than £700m per year to the regional economy.

The report is published at a time when the financial sector in the region is “thriving”, buoyed by the decisions of the Financial Conduct Authority, UK Infrastructure Bank and Bank of England to establish bases in Leeds.

More than 100 fintech firms have been identified in the Leeds City Region, the vast majority of which are startups and scale-ups, a segment which has tripled in number over the last three years. Core strengths are visible in payments, lending, financial regulation, wealth management and banking.

The region is already home to more than 60 established national and international financial services organisations, all of which are active in fintech, including numerous banks and lending firms, and three of the UK’s largest building societies. Leeds is also the only city outside London to be home to all three of the UK’s major credit reference agencies.

The new report is the result of a research project which was funded through sponsorship and support from Leeds City Council and other key organisations such as Leeds Building Society, LexisNexis Risk Solutions, Bruntwood SciTech, Cloud Gateway, Equiniti, the University of Leeds, FinTech North and the Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership.

Tom Riordan, chief executive of Leeds City Council, commented: “Whitecap Consulting has provided structure and clarity to the FinTech ecosystem in this report, and the in-depth research and analysis both quantifies and qualifies the strength, growth and maturity within the sector.

“It is great to see double digit growth across all of the key metrics since 2020, and the report recognises the diversity and key strengths across the range of tech sub sectors, from RegTech to LegalTech.”

Richard Fearon, chief executive at Leeds Building Society, added: “Tech and innovation are integral to providing the modern financial services that the Leeds City Region has become synonymous with.

“One-in-five of our people at Leeds Building Society hold a digital or tech role and they are fundamental to us delivering for our members. A thriving local FinTech industry also has a major role to play which is why we have been delighted to support this report.”

By Matthew Neville – Senior Correspondent, Bdaily

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