London tops list for global FinTech deals in 2019

London has overtaken New York for FinTech investment deals, according to new research based on Pitchbook data released today by London & Partners and Innovate Finance.

A Fine Year for FinTech: Global Trends from a UK Perspective explores the FinTech VC-led investment trends so far in 2019, comparing countries and cities around the world, in terms of deal value, deal count and sources of investment.   

While London has long been established as a thriving, well-connected financial eco-system, 2019 has seen record levels of investment in the UK.  In the first eight months of the year alone, over $2bn has been invested in London-based businesses across 114 deals, surpassing totals seen in any previous year. 

Amongst FinTech investment deals on a global level, London has taken top spot in 2019, with a total of 114 deals, overtaking New York in second place (101). San Francisco is in third place (80), with Beijing (24) and Singapore (23) competing for fourth and fifth.    

The US remains the largest market globally, with $9.37bn raised so far in 2019. 

Key findings from the report include: 

• The top five world cities by deal value in 2019 show the U.S. leading with San Francisco at $3.02bn, London second at $2.1bn, New York in third at $1.93bn, followed by Berlin at $881m, and Stockholm in fifth at $735m.
• A country comparison of global FinTech investment by deal value reveals the U.S. in top place ($9.37bn), the UK second place ($29bn), followed by Germany ($998.8m), China ($770.8m) and Sweden ($736.7m)
• London leads overall FinTech investment in Europe with $2.11bn investment, followed by Berlin ($881m), Stockholm ($734m), Paris ($330m) and Milan ($49m). 

• London also leads Europe with the top number of investment deals (114), ahead of Stockholm (21), Berlin (20), Paris (19), Milan (8).

• Germany has also performed strongly, with investment levels reaching record levels in 2019, following rapid growth between 2014 –18. In 2019, just under $1bn was invested in German companies across 37 deals. 

Out of the ten largest European investments recorded so far in 2019, London-based companies account for half these deals, totalling $1.8bn between them. The UK capital’s FinTech sector is a leading source of high value scale-up companies, with Monzo ($143m) and WorldRemit ($175m) featuring in the lofty ranks of unicorn success stories.  

Other London based investment deals include: OakNorth ($440m); Checkout.com ($230m); Iwoca ($195m). The full chart: 10 Largest European Investment Deals* is available below. (See Notes to editors.)  

An analysis into the top ten cities for number of FinTech deals in 2019 shows that London has the most international investors, with 54% of total VC investment involving an investor from outside the UK. **  

The UK capital attracts a wider international variety of investors than other European hubs, with 39% of investors coming from outside Europe, compared to 32% in Berlin and Paris with 24%. London also attracts a more diverse international investor mix than North American cities; only 11% of investors in San Francisco came from outside of North America, and 15% in New York. 

Laura Citron, CEO, London & Partners, said: "London is the capital of capital. And as these numbers show, London is innovating to stay ahead, with more FinTech deals than anywhere else in the world. 

"London is the natural home of FinTech because it combines the power of global financial markets with a deep technology talent pool, supportive regulation and an early-adopting customer base. FinTech entrepreneurs in London can meet the regulator in the morning, have lunch with a global bank, hire a top engineer in the afternoon, and enjoy world-class culture in the evening. That convergence is pretty unique." 

Charlotte Crosswell, CEO, Innovate Finance, said: “The UK is the clear global leader in the FinTech sector, spearheaded by London’s success and long-standing position as a major leading financial centre. It’s no surprise London and the whole of the UK FinTech sector is experiencing record growth – we are home to world-class talent and our historical pedigree enables access to key global markets. With record investment under our belt, this is the time to boost the sector further and secure future growth.”  

The release of the research coincides with the opening of Sibos London 2019 (23 – 26 September) one of the world’s leading financial services events.  Sibos 2019 marks the first-time this global financial services event has been held in London, and promises to be the biggest conference to date, with over 10,000 delegates. The conference explores the concept of thriving in a hyper-connected world with the challenges, and opportunities brought by mass digitisation and data-driven relationships. 

A Fine Year for FinTech: Global Trends from a UK Perspective.  Published September 2019 by London & Partners & Innovate Finance. The report can be downloaded here. 

(Data figures sourced from Pitchbook show figures from 1 January 2019 – 16 August 2019)