UK Tech Market Primed for Massive Growth in 2015

by Startacus Admin

2015 is the year of the self starter - we said it on January 1st and what has happened since has only made our position even more resolute.

Just a few weeks ago we were reporting the incredible news that entrepreneurship had reached its highest ever level in the UK in 2014, and now we’re delighted to share some more encouraging news released just yesterday by the folks at Barclays.

Through a ‘Fast Growth Technology Survey’ which targeted CEOs and founders of UK technology firms, they have found that there is an incredible optimism amongst the industry leaders, which hints at the possibility for the entire sector to see enormous growth over the coming year or so.

Quadruple the Rate of GDP Growth

The report was independently commissioned by Barclays’ Technology, Media and Telecoms team and has cast a light on the general outlook of the country’s technology sector; and the overall picture is good…very good in fact.

On average, those businesses that were included in the survey indicated that they expect to grow by about 11% over the course of 2015, a rate which if achieved, would see this sector expand at a speed which was over 4xs that predicted for the country’s GDP. On either side of the average, figures remain extremely encouraging, with 58% of the technology folks predicting growth of up to 10%, and 9% expecting to grow by over 20%.

Beyond 2015 the confidence of tech firms seems to be only going in one direction, with CEOs and founders holding an even higher expectation for 2016, where 15% growth is the average being predicted.

Whilst we must point out that these figures don’t technically mean anything, and are no guarantee of future growth, the fact that those within the technology sector are so confident in their ability to deliver fast and sustained expansion is a very encouraging sign.

Could this be the first signs of a golden age to come for UK technology? Of course we would never do anything so hazardous as make a prediction about the future of the economy; unseen forces push and pull it hither and thither, until the outcome is anyone’s guess. But this report is certainly positive news and we are happy to hear it!

UK Technology Thriving Nationwide.

The encouraging report from Barclays comes just a few days after Tech Nation’s even more startling findings regarding the state of the UK’s technology sector nationwide. It found unequivocally that the country’s tech industry is expanding rapidly across the board and especially so, in some often wrongly maligned places outside London.

The report, which is the most comprehensive ever carried out on the UK’s digital sector, has shone welcome and unexpected light on the country's most thriving technology hubs and has also dispelled the myth that you need to be in the capital to succeed.

Some 74% of UK technology firms are now based outside of the greater London area, and what is really interesting to read in the report, is that there are a number of vibrant digital technology clusters forming across the UK, and these are diversifying in expertise! The folks at TechNation have profiled 21 of these clusters in detail including Manchester, Bristol and Bath, Glasgow, Sheffield, and Belfast.

Of all of those profiled, the areas with the fastest growing technology sectors were Bournemouth, Liverpool, Brighton and Hove, Inner London, South Wales, and Belfast and NI.

The Report is jam-packed with great insights into the country’s digital sector and is available in its entirety here  - it’s certainly worth a read. 

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Published on: 10th February 2015