Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate her Department has made of the size of the UK FinTech scale-up funding gap.

The Scale-up Unit is a joint initiative by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to enhance engagement with fast-growing, innovative firms. It builds on existing regulatory support for early-stage innovative firms, including through the joint PRA and FCA New Bank and Insurer Start-up Units, to support firms as they seek to scale-up.

The FCA and PRA will conduct further industry-wide engagement to gather input which will help shape the future direction of the Unit.

Sir Ron Kalifa, in his 2021 Review of Fintech, identified a UK Fintech scale-up funding gap of £2 billion. The Financial Services Growth and Competitiveness Strategy set out measures to tackle this gap, including the launch of this Scale-Up Unit, and work led by the City of London Corporation and British Business Bank to facilitate greater access to finance and commercial opportunities for fast-growing Fintech firms.