Tech firms in London attracted 2.45 billion pounds ($3.3 billion) in venture capital funding in 2017, about 80 per cent of the 2.99 billion pounds invested in Britain as a whole, according to data compiled by funding database PitchBook for London & Partners. Eileen Burbidge, partner at Passion Capital, said it was no surprise to see London – and Britain – leading the pack because it has both the talent and investor capital needed. Artificial intelligence (AI) was another growth area, with UK-based AI firms raising 488 million pounds, double the amount a year earlier, the data showed. Other big deals last year included a 391 million pound investment into Improbable, whose software creates large-scale simulations in the cloud; 364 million pounds for food delivery company Deliveroo; and 255 million pounds for mobile phone firm Truphone. “In our portfolio roughly 50 companies of the 150 companies we have are headquartered in London, and there are about another 25 foreign companies that have set up in London,” he said.

Source: The Express Tribune January 05, 2018 07:07 UTC