The chancellor of the exchequer Philip Hammond wants the UK to remain at the forefront of the FinTech revolution post-Brexit.
Speaking at HM government’s inaugural International FinTech Conference in London today, Hammond called on innovators, investors and regulators to help him realise that vision by continuing to attract skilled workers from overseas.
“Help us build a truly world-beating new tech sector,” Hammond said, adding: “We cannot rest on our laurels”.
With many UK tech entrepreneurs concerned about their access to overseas talent in a post-Brexit reality, Hammond said it was important for the country to continue attracting the “brightest and best from around the world”.
But while he noted the need to attract overseas workers, Hammond said: “We must also do better at nurturing and developing the home-grown talent to drive our economy forward in the future.”
With Brexit in mind, Hammond spoke about the need for the UK to make the most of its future outside of the European Union (EU) and build trade links with fast-growing economies in Asia.
“We have to invest in the skills of the future … and our economy must remain at the cutting edge,” Hammond noted.
The chancellor’s remarks come weeks after he led a business delegation to India in a seeming attempt to woo businesses in the nation after PM Theresa May triggered Article 50 at the end of March.
“Help us build a truly world-beating new tech sector,” the chancellor said during his speech. “Let your ideas, your apps, your services, your equity demonstrate what’s really possible when government, business and regulators all pull in the same direction.”
Hammond also highlighted the need to invest in the skills of the future and to boost not just FinTech, but also emerging sectors such as AI, BioTech and every other area in which the UK has the potential to be a leading force.
“We will have to strive and graft and fight to seize opportunities; and make the most of them.
“That means growing and strengthening the areas – like FinTech – in which we enjoy a comparative advantage … and it means ensuring we are producing the people with the skills and the aptitude to become the next wave of innovators, entrepreneurs and investors,” concluded the chancellor.
Photo courtesy of Ben Brabyn on Twitter.