UK tech sector grows tenfold in 10 years

Big expansion of the UK tech sector since 2010 has viewed mission capital investment and the different of unicorn companies lengthen by element of 10

Sebastian Klovig Skelton

Sebastian Klovig Skelton ,
Senior reporter

Published: 19 Would perhaps perhaps also just 2021 13: 30

The UK’s technology sector has viewed a tenfold lengthen in both mission capital investment and the different of billion-dollar “unicorn” companies over the previous decade, alternate figures voice.

Between 2010 and 2020 investment in the UK’s tech alternate grew from £1.2bn to £11.3bn, with most of this lengthen taking attach since 2015 when investment used to be £4.1bn, in preserving with figures from the authorities’s Digital Financial system Council and Dealroom.co.

As an illustration, in 2017, 2019 and 2020, the UK attracted document ranges of tech investment, and no topic a 28% dip in mission capital funding at some level of 2018 – which used to be largely attributed to the political uncertainty surrounding Brexit on the time – UK tech companies tranquil managed to raise £2.49bn.

There has also been a tenfold lengthen in the different of unicorns (companies valued at more than $1bn), which increased from eight in 2010 to 81 by the discontinuance of 2020. A extra 10 unicorns have been created for the explanation that delivery of 2021.

Out of these unicorns, 32 were monetary technology (fintech) companies, 14 centered on enterprise machine, and 13 were in the smartly being tech dwelling – sectors which have constantly attracted essentially the most capital over the previous decade.

By comparison, France, Germany, Sweden and Israel had mixed complete of 85 unicorns in 2020, and most productive France and Germany raised more than £4.3bn in Challenge capital funding closing 365 days.

“UK tech has viewed document ranges of boost over the previous decade, turning a nation of startups into one of scaleups. Traders are all for backing UK startups attributable to a mixture of reducing-edge learn, professional engineering and tech skill, and operators who understand straightforward straightforward techniques to originate a sturdy, sustainable industry,” said digital secretary Oliver Dowden.

“This authorities will bear all it’s going to to present a opt to the entrepreneurs who’ve created this shiny new part of our economy and which now employs almost three million of us in direction of the country, from our world-smartly-known tech centres admire London and Cambridge to our cities, suburbs and rural areas.”

The figures also cowl that a extra 132 companies are in actual fact regarded as having the aptitude to attain unicorn attach, up from true 10 in 2010.

Despite the proven reality that the extensive majority of these future unicorns are essentially essentially essentially based in London (83), a different of high-boost scaleups would be voice in Cambridgeshire (10), Oxfordshire (11), the North West in total (5), and Scotland (4).

The five future unicorns with the most life like probably valuations are, in preserving with the figures, digital banks Zopa and Atom Bank, kids’s leisure agency Moonbug, related car files provider Wejo, and ethical jewelry sourcing company Vashi.

“The meander of boost in the UK tech ecosystem in the previous 10 years has been immense and we’re confident that there might well be more to return. The UK now has a out of the ordinary 132 ‘futurecorns’, more than France and Germany mixed, which demonstrates the extent to which the UK is leading Europe,” said Tech Nation chair Stephen Kelly.

Yoram Wijngaarde, founder and CEO of Dealroom.co, added: “Rising hubs proceed to be impressed by the UK ecosystem’s creep from an eccentric cluster of companies around a grim roundabout to the successful global companies we demand now.

“With endured coverage innovation, learn investment and the factual skill, the UK can originate on the momentum into the following decade as the beating heart of a European tech ecosystem turning global heads.”

No topic the sustained lengthen in mission capital funding over the previous decade, a significant piece went to a tiny different of companies and used to be concentrated in London.

Within the middle of 2020, for example, when UK tech companies collectively raised a document-breaking $15bn, around 20% of this complete (roughly $3.5bn) went to true 10 scaleup companies. Many of the capital ($10.5bn) used to be also raised by companies in London.

Nonetheless, the document ranges of investment did coincide with a inviting lengthen in the different of most up to the moment technology companies being attach of residing up, with UK industry creation figures from March 2021 showing that a new technology industry used to be created every half an hour at some level of 2020, with almost about 19,500 registering in complete in direction of the UK.

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