DTM Legal are excited to be working alongside a number of companies to analyse and develop the FinTech ecosystem across the Liverpool City Region. The organisations collaborating are from the public and private sector as well as higher education including Whitecap Consulting, Growth Platform (Liverpool City Region Growth Company), Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, RSM (UK), University of Liverpool, Professional Liverpool and FinTech North.
The project will be led and delivered by Whitecap Consulting, the regional strategy consultancy that has conducted similar work over recent years across numerous regional FinTech ecosystems. The output will be a published report on the FinTech ecosystem, including recommendations and suggested actions which can help support the economic contribution of the sector to the regional economy.
The project will be supported by a number of sponsors and partners, including Growth Platform (Liverpool City Region Growth Company), Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, University of Liverpool, DTM Legal, RSM UK, Professional Liverpool, and FinTech North. Further sponsors are being sought and are expected to be announced soon.
Richard Harris, Partner at DTM Legal commented, ‘We have been working with FinTech companies for a number of years and have seen the growth and development across the sector. It is really exciting that Liverpool is firmly on the FinTech map and this report will detail further the scope and depth that it connects across the region, UK and further afield. It is good for the sector and the City and we are looking forward to seeing how it unravels going forward.’
Simon Reid, Head of Sectors at Growth Platform, Liverpool City Region Growth Company, said:
“FinTech is increasingly relevant and embedded into multiple other sectors such as retail, travel, social media, gaming, and property. It is important that the Liverpool City Region outlines its FinTech proposition so this can be shared nationally and internationally, and used to help drive economic growth and inward investment from what is now the strongest sub-sector in the UK’s technology industry. Although this report is primarily focused on FinTech, it offers an opportunity to showcase the region’s wider applied tech capabilities.”
In February 2021, a strategic review of UK FinTech (the Kalifa Review) was published which highlighted the strength of key regional FinTech clusters across the UK, and identified a need for individual clusters to develop their FinTech capabilities and to collaborate regionally and nationally. A key driver for the new project is recognition that it would be beneficial to raise the profile of FinTech within the Liverpool City Region and on a national / international basis.
Liverpool City Region has a long-standing interest in the FinTech sector, and has played an active role in a number of international FinTech missions to the North of England, bringing international FinTechs to the region including visits to Sensor City, the Baltic Triangle, and SciTech Daresbury.
Julian Wells, Director and Financial Services & FinTech Lead at Whitecap Consulting, says:
“We are excited to be working on this new project and supporting the growth of FinTech in the Liverpool City Region. FinTech has been a visible area of interest for inward investment in the region over recent years, and there have been a number of FinTech North events in Liverpool since 2018, drawing audiences from within the region and further afield.”
Charlotte Crosswell OBE, Chair of the recently launched Centre for Finance, Innovation & Technology (CFIT), says:
“I’m delighted to see the continued growth in FinTech activity across the UK, and am really enthused to see the Liverpool City Region investing in the development of its FinTech sector via this project. Our work at CFIT focuses on the financial services and technology sectors across the UK and our aspiration is to drive international FinTech growth, attract talent into the FinTech sector, and ensure better outcomes for consumers and SMEs. Central to this is a desire to enhance the links between industry, academia, government, and regulators, and I look forward to working with the key stakeholders in the Liverpool City Region.”
David Anderson, Assistant Director of the Combined Authority, said:
‘We are pleased to be working with Whitecap Consulting on this important review and to be able to improve the way we promote the Liverpool City Region’s capability in relation to FinTech, LegalTech and other areas of applied technology. Whitecap’s regional FinTech reports have an established reputation as an authoritative source of data, insights and content for inward investment activity, and we look forward to receiving the findings and using the data to help attract new investment to the city region.”
The work will involve the development of data and insights relating to the FinTech capability and potential of the region, and will be launched at a FinTech North event to be held in Liverpool before the summer.
Organisations in the region who are interested to be involved in the project should email Richard Harris at richard.harris@dtmlegal.com or Kate Roberts at kate.roberts@dtmlegal.com
