Region’s thriving financial services seactor contributes £10 billion to UK economy

THE South West’s financial services industry is making a ‘significant’ contribution to the UK economy – and Bristol is the leading financial centre in the region – a new report has revealed.

The sector now employs 158,00 people in the West of England, according to TheCityUK’s ‘Enabling Growth across the UK 2018’ report, and the region’s financial services industry contributed nearly £10billion to to the economy in 2016. Key sectors in the region include legal services, banking and insurance, along with significant security broking and fund management activity.

Bristol is the top financial centre in the area, with over 33,500 in employment in financial and related professional services – about one fifth of total employment in the industry in the South West.

The city, which has a long history of specialising in insurance, legal and banking, is now one of the UK’s main financial hubs, the report stated. A stream of highly skilled graduates from universities in Bristol and Bath has also played a key role in solidifying the area’s status as a financial centre. Miles Celic, chief executive of TheCityUK, said: “One in every 14 British jobs is in financial and related professional services. These ‘City jobs’ aren’t just confined to London, they’re in financial clusters all across the UK, in cities such as Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Manchester. The strength of our financial centres across the country underlines what a national success story this industry is. Building on this success will need a supportive business environment and greater emphasis on local expertise and local decision making. A one-size-fits-all approach won’t be good enough.”

Stephen Noakes, TheCityUK City chair for Bristol, added: “Bristol supports a strong and diverse financial and related professional services industry. Over recent years we have seen the development of a fast-growing and highlyinnovative FinTech cluster that is providing broader support to the existing ecosystem. Practical measures that help these firms scale up quickly will be crucial, and should be key priorities for our devolved political leadership.”