Raise Quicker, Hire Better, Scale Faster
The UK is currently experiencing a startup boom with companies raising quickly; hiring top talent and scaling fast.
Tech Nation does an amazing job in summarising the strength of the UK and why it is one of the best places in the world to establish and scale a startup 🏆.
Tech Nation’s Report 2021 highlights how the UK is the number 1 in Europe and 3rd in the world for scale-up investment, behind only the USA and China.
According to Dealroom, UK start-ups and scale-ups raised a record $15bn in 2020, of which $13.7bn was in venture capital investment, representing a third of the total in Europe (Pitchbook). This is the highest in Europe and more than Germany and France combined ($12.9bn).
Looking at where to establish a HQ? London has the 2nd best start-up ecosystem in the world (alongside New York and second only to Silicon Valley). According to The Global Start-up Ecosystem Report 2020; London received the maximum score in funding, connectedness, market reach and talent indicators.
All of these market conditions means that the UK is the first country in Europe to reach 100 tech unicorns, exceeding Germany (42), France (22) and the Netherlands (18) combined.
Top reasons that are fuelling this growth...
- Talent - exceptional talent from some of the worlds top universities.
- Strong IP Protection - The UK’s legal systems are designed to support businesses.
- % A Globally Competitive Tax System - low corporation tax, digital tax system simplifies paperwork and reduces bureaucracy.
- Investor Tax Incentives S/EIS - ability to offer tax relief to individual investors  who buy new shares in a startup thanks to SEIS and EIS
- Progressive Regulators - The UK’s independent financial regulatory body, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), is one of the world’s most innovative regulators.
- Not Just London - From Manchester to Edinburgh to my personal favourite Cardiff, each city and region has key strengths to start and scale new ventures.
- Easy to setup - Create a company extremely quickly anywhere in the UK (does not matter where the city is, all regions operate under one system).
- Strong local Market - Access the 5th biggest economy in the word (World Bank Group)
- Central Time Zone - Many companies find the central timezone a benefit when managing operations across the world.