Most London FinTech firms are not prepared for the fallout of a no deal Brexit, says a new report.
More than three quarters, (78 per cent) of firms surveyed by Innovate Finance said they were not prepared for Britain to leave the EU without a deal, and 45 per cent said they don’t feel prepared even if there is a transition period.
The main concerns of a no-deal scenario shared by the FinTech firms were ‘passporting’, by which firms can apply for a ‘passport’ to do business throughout the EU, cross-border transactions, servicing EU clients and retaining and attracting new talent.
The survey also reports that 38 per cent of FinTech say they have not taken any steps to prepare for Brexit, but the majoirty have begun tasks such as reviewing data processing, preserving talent and undertaking risk management procedures.
Charlotte Crosswell, CEO of Innovate Finance, said: “At this time of rapid growth in the UK’s FinTech sector, which is at the heart of the future prosperity of the UK economy and innovation, we would prefer our members to be focussing on their businesses, scaling up to conquer new markets, at home and internationally.
“Hearing directly from the industry and amplifying its message to Government is a vital step to ensuring ongoing growth for fintech. Businesses must take the lead to make sure our FinTech sector remains strong. Now is the time to avoid complacency, further strengthen our position and support the sector’s growth.”
London-based OakNorth was one of the firms surveyed. Its deputy CEO and COO Alok Prasad said: “At OakNorth we pay close attention to factors that may impact the bank and our customers. Given that our business model focuses on lending to SMEs and longer-term consumer savings, we expect the impact of no-deal Brexit to be limited.
“However, we have sufficient liquidity at the Bank to address the uncertainty. We intend to very closely monitor the news, markets, social media and other information to be fully aware of potential impacts of a no-deal Brexit.