March 12 - London has overtaken San Francisco and New York as the world's largest financial technology hub, as European FinTech funding achieved parity with the United States for the first time,
London overtakes San Francisco, New York as top FinTech hub, growth capital fund says
European FinTech Funding Surges Ahead of U.S. Counterparts
(Corrects company description to growth capital fund from hedge fund in headline and lede)
By Leo Marchandon
March 12 - London has overtaken San Francisco and New York as the world's largest financial technology hub, as European FinTech funding achieved parity with the United States for the first time, according to data released by growth capital fund Finch Capital.
European FinTech funding grew 37% between 2022 and 2025, while investment in top U.S. hubs declined 13%, reaching an equivalent 40 billion euros each, according to data published by Finch Capital on Thursday.
Key Findings from Finch Capital Report
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Late-Stage Funding Challenges
Late-stage funding remains a challenge, as every European round over one billion euros was led by U.S. investors.
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Policy Gap vs. Market Verdict
Nine billion euros discrepancy is "a policy gap, not a market verdict", Finch Capital partner Aman Ghei says.
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Pension Fund Allocations
European vs. U.S. Investment Rates
European pension funds allocate just 0.02% of assets to venture capital, significantly lagging the U.S. rate of 1.9%. Bridging this gap could unlock 37.5 billion euros annually, Finch Capital estimates.
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Strength in Regulatory Verticals
Return on Investment Comparisons
Ghei highlighted Europe's strength in regulatory-intensive verticals, with CFO office and regulatory software firms achieving a 2.54x return, compared to 1.31x in the U.S.
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Corporate Investment Opportunities
U.S. Companies' Aggressive Approach
Ghei also pointed to corporate investment opportunities that U.S. companies are seizing more aggressively, citing ASML's investment in AI firm Mistral as an example.
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European Capital Availability
European capital exists and reliance on U.S. investors is not a necessity, he added.
(Reporting by Leo Marchandon in Gdansk; Editing by Matt Scuffham)
