If you’re a SaaS founder or executive in fintech, it can pay large dividends to keep an eye on (and in touch with) other UK fintech companies.
This short guide explores some of the benefits of knowing the UK fintech scene, why you should look beyond London, and where you can find fintech peers and opportunities outside of London.
No software product succeeds in isolation. There are times when you must put your head down to focus on your own product, but keeping in touch with what’s happening in the UK fintech scene is how you will get the support you need to take your company to the next stage.
Here are some advantages to be gained by keeping your eyes open.
If your goal is to raise funding, then it’s never too early to start building a list of potential investors. A great way to start building this list is to keep track of who is currently investing in the fintech space.
Knowing which companies are attracting funding gives you a big clue to what investors are looking for in a fintech investment. Keeping track of when and how much companies raise (and learning how they structured the deals) will help you when it comes time to put a proposal in front of investors.
All around the UK there are fintech founders who have just raised money, just had an exit, just launched a successful product, or just hired a CEO. Whatever challenge you’re trying to solve next, it’s possible to get help from someone who has recently cleared that hurdle.
Finding the right people for your team may be the most valuable skill for the future of your company—one more reason it pays to monitor the UK fintech scene. Keep an eye out for smart and capable people who have proven themselves in your sector.
Fintech companies in London are more widely publicized, get more coverage in the media, and will have more people contacting them. Their secrets are more likely to be common knowledge to the fintech community. Fintech companies outside London on the other hand will be just as instructive, may be more approachable as peers, and represent a repository of information that the majority of your competition is not accessing.
Below, we’ve listed some of the largest fintech hubs outside of London, as identified by Deloitte as part of the Khalifa Review, along with some examples of prominent fintech companies from each city.
There are also a number of emerging clusters such as Bristol and Bath, Cambridge, Newcastle, Reading, Belfast, and Cardiff.
Whether you need a key staff member, validation of your business model, a mentor, a mastermind group, or the right investor for your company - someone in the UK fintech sector likely holds the answer. Looking beyond the headlines and the companies making the news will give you access to research and connections that your competitors are missing out on.