Chancellor Rishi Sunak is expected to announce the plan to help the UK fintech sector retain the talent, according to a report in the Sunday Telegraph
The UK government will use a visa scheme aimed at fintech professionals to fill gaps in the sector’s workforce after it lost access to the EU’s massive skills base.
The fintech industry has welcomed the move, which has repeatedly raised concerns over access to skills during the Brexit process.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak is expected to announce the plan to help the UK fintech sector retain the talent, according to a report in the Sunday Telegraph.
The UK’s exit from the EU removed the automatic right of professionals across Europe to work in the UK. At the same time, thousands of skilled Europeans have left the UK following Brexit.
There is global competition for talent in the fintech sector, and hubs in Berlin, Barcelona and Amsterdam are becoming increasingly attractive to fintech professionals with the right to work across the EU who would traditionally head to the UK.
Ricky Knox, CEO at digital challenger bank Tandem, said some of the company’s European tech staff decided to leave the UK after Brexit.
Tech visas are a great thing and essential if we are going to keep a competitive tech and fintech sector, he added. Over half of our coders are from outside the UK and some have already left due to Brexit. He said specialist visas for fintech workers will “help to ensure the UK remains a vibrant fintech hub for Europe”.
There is potentially a lot to lose. According to research conducted by market intelligence firm Dealroom and investment agency London & Partners, £3.064bn went to London’s fintech firms in 2020.
Michael Kent, CEO at cross-border money transfer fintech Azimo, said he and others in the industry have been pushing for such a visa. I haven’t seen the details, but it is good that the UK government is taking this seriously. Fintech is all about people, he added.
Shawn Tan, CEO of Skymind, a company that focuses on AI Ecosystems in fintech, agreed that the visa is good news. As an international company that has recently set up its operations in London, we want to make sure that we can hire the talent we need, he said. The UK already has an advanced ecosystem, favourable regulation and an openness to innovation that is not found in other countries.
Combining these factors with a steady pipeline of highly skilled workers will keep the fintech sector thriving for years to come, he said.
A visa for fintech will emulate one already in place for tech firms. The UK’s Global Talent visa scheme aims to make it easier for skilled talent to come to the UK, and is a reformed version of the Tier 1 (exceptional talent) route for skilled applicants applying to work in the UK without a job offer.
Gerard Grech, CEO at UK government-backed startup network Tech Nation, said the organisation is supporting the government. Fintech is a UK stronghold with billions of pounds going into UK fintechs last year, said Grech.