London's technology sector continues to thrive despite the imminent prospect of leaving the European Union, according to a new report.
British technology companies raised 4,500 million pounds (US $ 6,100 million) in 2017, almost double the amount obtained last year, according to the report by Tech Nation, an organization partially funded by the government to promote the digital economy of the United Kingdom. United. The country is surpassed only by the United States and China in venture capital investments, according to the report.
London is the second most "connected" technology center in the world after Silicon Valley, according to entrepreneurs who account for an important relationship with two or more people based in the city. Based on data from Startup Genome, a group that helps cities build digital ecosystems, Tech Nation said that London beat Silicon Valley in number of digital companies with foreign clients: 33% vs. 30%.
London also boasts one of the world's most international workforces for startups, while 54% of employees of young digital companies were born outside the United Kingdom. It is still a smaller percentage than Berlin, which quickly emerges as a rival center for European startups, in particular because the founders are concerned that they will not be able to hire foreign workers without difficulties when the UK leaves the European Union in March. 2019. The report noted that Berlin was the only other European technological ecosystem in the global top 10 according to several metrics.
"Without a doubt, our new relationship with the EU will force us to become even more adaptable, innovative and ambitious," Gerard Grech, Tech Nation's top executive, said in a statement.
The report also underscored how far the British technology sector is from closing the gender gap. Women represented only 19% of the digital workforce in the United Kingdom, compared to 49% in the total sectors.