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The Kalifa Review of UK FinTech


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At the beginning of March 2021, Ron Kalifa OBE published an independent review on the UK FinTech sector, as charged by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak. Set out in the review, is a strategy and delivery model designed to provide leadership in FinTech – with comprehensive, coordinated and focused recommendations that support FinTech scale-ups with the capital and skills they need to succeed (quoting the review preface).

Both the executive summary and final Kalifa Review report can be read or downloaded below - or are available from https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-kalifa-review-of-uk-fintech


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The review highlighted how the trajectory of UK FinTech is both at a point of opportunity and risk, as whilst the UK has an impressive scorecard and is well established, its future is not assured. Primary threats included competition from overseas centres in locations such as Singapore, Australia and Canada, the regulatory uncertainties created by Brexit and global digital adoption accelerated by the COVID pandemic. Today, however, the sophisticated financial services ecosystem of London has catalysed the UK as a FinTech hub:

  • Representing 10% of global market share and £11bn in revenue, the UK is a dominant force in FinTech.

  • The total tech spend by UK financial services firms was £95bn in 2019.

  • SMEs and corporates are all keen users of FinTech. UK citizens are becoming digitally active and 71% are now using the services of at least one FinTech company.

  • Investment into UK FinTech stood at $4.1bn in 2020 – more than the next 5 European countries combined.

For the last three months Caspian One’s Director of FinTech, Adam Vipond, has been in communication with Innovate Finance (whose non-exec is Ron Kalifa OBE) - in regard to this important FinTech release. Adam was able to share our market insights and intelligence surrounding careers and innovation in FinTech, and we were pleased to see many of our suggestions and raised points included in the final review.

Referring to page 40 of the review, it’s believed that by 2030 FinTech’s direct GVA contribution to the UK economy will be £13.7bn, with job creation contributing to 70% of this – but these projections are threatened by potential skill deficits. This aligns directly with what we’re witnessing, with many skilled members of the tech community transitioning away from traditional banking projects to work with more exciting technologies. It’s a primary driver behind our Future Talent services, which in collaboration with our clients and select partners, are changing how FinTech’s engage with the next generation of talent (read more).


At Caspian One, from our leadership team to our hands-on consultants we strive to build relationships with partners and leading experts, throughout the global FinTech market. It’s these partnerships that enable us to help with shaping the future of the market itself, integrated within innovation and change.

Another example of this is our work within Open Finance and Open APIs. Caspian One are early-stage contributors to ‘Open Banking’, working directly with regulators and key players vital to the global expansion of this new ecosystem (learn more). For more information about the Kalifa Report, the outcome of this review, our contributions to the report or any of our FinTech services – contact fintech@caspianone.com or call +44 (0) 203 691 9200.