Fintechs take centre stage in new growth index
The UK’s fastest growing companies are growing faster than at any point in the last four
years. That’s according to Growth Index, an annual ranking of businesses that turn over at
least £5m by two-year compound annual revenue growth, published today, with an exclusive
preview in Morning Wire.
The top 100, led by anti-tout ticketing app DICE FM, grew at an average of 114.2 per cent annually,
up from 107 per cent last year and 92 per cent the year before, partly as the effects of Covid on baseline revenues eased, but partly reflecting the extraordinary surge in one sector in particular:
fintech.
This year, 27 of the Growth Index 100 were finance companies, spanning B2B payments and marketplace finance through to consumer-facing budgeting, investment and savings
brands. That makes it by far the largest sector – with over twice as many as retail or energy
and utilities – but also the one with the highest average growth. It additionally marks a steep
increase from last year, when only six fintechs made the list.
The cohort reflects the maturity and vibrancy of the wider financial services ecosystem,
particularly in London, home to 24 of the leading fintechs and 55 of the wider top 100 – a
geographical dominance that has extended since last year.
Fintech’s flourishing comes hand in hand with a marked increase in the proportion of high-
growth companies that previously received venture capital or private equity funding. Last
year, only 14 Growth Index companies had done equity rounds; this year, it is 68.
The surge in fintech fundraising in 2021 and 2022 – $222bn in global VC investments across
the two years, of which $26bn went to the UK – undoubtedly contributed to the subsequent
flat-out growth of its leading companies.
The question for the sector is whether it can maintain that pace, and its dominance of lists
like this, given the steep declines in fundraising in the years since.
The full Growth Index report, including founder interviews and analysis, is available at
here