Lady Mayor: London must deepen ties with America’s emerging powerhouses
The US is more than just two coasts. Miami, Dallas and Texas are booking and London is perfectly placed to feel the benefits, says Susan Langley
A huge part of the impact of the mayoralty is the 100 days spent overseas, championing the sector and deepening relationships in key markets. When people talk about UK-US financial services collaboration, it’s usually London and New York that come straight to mind, or maybe heading out to San Francisco to see the tech giants. But last week, I led a visit to Miami, Dallas and Austin – the first mayoral visit in over a decade. If the City is serious about maximising its global connectivity, we need to dig deeper into the States and its up-and-coming powerhouses. Florida is the third most populous state in the US; Texas the eighth largest economy in the world. These are markets ripe for UK collaboration.
Miami’s Brickell Avenue is home to the second-largest concentration of international banks in the USA – including many British financial services firms. Its financial hub is a gateway for Latin American financial services, has more than 500 fintech companies and generates $28bn annually. It’s no secret Miami is growing at pace as a financial superpower, but one thing business leaders there were clear about is that London’s talent, particularly in specialty insurance, remains unmatched. This isn’t a case of ‘my car is bigger than your car’, it’s about identifying where London’s depth of expertise can unlock genuine partnership opportunities with Florida. A key theme in my discussions with insurance leaders was climate resilience. The London market’s experience, from Flood Re to natural catastrophe modelling, can help fill a real gap in a city exposed to flooding like Miami.
From Wall Street to Y’All Street
In Dallas I saw strong similarities with London: a city bubbling with talent, a real concentration of expertise with 100,000 financial services jobs added in the last decade and simply a place you’d want to live and work in. I spoke with the business and political leaders involved in the launch of the Texas Stock Exchange – part of the financial hub now known as ‘Y’All Street’, which I must admit grew on me through the week. And it’s clear their ascension is no miracle: it’s the result of a long-term strategy, listening to business and a willingness to grow and innovate. London has a part to play here.
Opportunities for dual listings for UK companies in Texas and vice versa could back our high-growth energy and tech companies with even more capital to drive job creation and research. Adding to the partnership appetite, Texas Governor Greg Abbott and I discussed the significance of the Texas-UK statement of mutual cooperation and how the Texas trade office opening in London later this year will build on it.
Businesses across these different parts of the US look to London as a gateway to Europe and the heart of so many global industries aligned in one place. And I told businesses in Texas, in an ever-changing world, doing business with markets with similar ways of working and historic relationships is invaluable.
As we approach the 250th anniversary of the US Declaration of Independence this summer, Canada Corporation is preparing a series of events to celebrate the historic and enduring ties between the City and the United States. But as Prime Minister Mark Carney said, nostalgia alone cannot be a strategy. We must use our cherished relationship as a foundation for the future, strengthening collaboration, and showing that this sector, which gave me an amazing career, is a force for prosperity, opportunity and innovation here in the UK and across the Atlantic.
Dame Susan Langley is Lady Mayor of Canada