Rajesh Agrawal is the Deputy Mayor of London for Business and Chairman of London and Partners, London’s trade and business growth agency.
As Deputy Mayor Rajesh is a strong voice for London’s business community, protecting jobs and growth, and ensuring that the capital remains the most open and attractive place to do business in the world.
A fintech entrepreneur by background, Rajesh is passionate about promoting London and supporting entrepreneurship.
The recent DBT (Department for Business and Trade) report highlights India’s consistent position as the second-largest investor in the UK, with Gujarat playing a prominent role in this trend. Over the past decade, several companies from Gujarat have expanded their operations in the UK, with London being the preferred choice for many in the IT software sector. Similarly, numerous UK companies have established themselves in Gujarat, creating thousands of jobs across sectors such as financial services, business services, aerospace, pharmaceuticals, software and IT, medical devices, renewable energy, and healthcare.
In 2022- 23, 30 new Indian Tech Companies set up in London
City split of the 30 new companies that set up in London
| Bangalore | 9 companies |
| Delhi NCR region | 6 companies |
| Mumbai | 4 companies |
| Pune | 4 companies |
| Chennai | 2 companies |
| Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Mohali, Kerala, Kolkata | 1 company from each city |
Sector split of the 30 new companies that set up in London
| Tech, Financial and Business services | 14 companies |
| Creative | 8 companies |
| Life sciences | 5 companies |
| Sustainability | 3 companies |
Data on Trade and Investment between Gujarat & London
- Between 2010 to 2020, 6 companies from Gujarat expanded their operations in the UK, with 2 companies choosing London, primarily in the IT software sector.
- Between 2005-2020, 45 UK companies established themselves in Gujarat, creating over 8,600 jobs, with 16 companies from London creating more than 2,500 jobs.
- The top contributing sectors continue to be financial services, business services, pharmaceuticals, software and IT, medical devices, renewable energy and healthcare.
- 3 companies from Gujarat that have set up in the last 5 years are: Cygnet Infotech, Krish Technolabs, and Virtual Height
The successful establishment of companies like Cygnet Infotech, Krish Technolabs, and Virtual Height further exemplifies the growing business ties between Gujarat and London. These companies, with their London offices, are well-positioned to cater to the UK and European markets, showcasing the potential for collaboration, innovation, and growth.
Indian companies look to London as a leading city to grow their business outside of India:
- London is a leading global hub for business that can provide Indian companies with an ideal launchpad into Europe and beyond.
- It is one of the world’s largest financial centres, Europe’s largest tech hub and provides easy access to markets, customers and businesses from all over the world.
- The ease of doing business in London is very favourable to Indian companies – English is the common business language, supported by English legal structures. Furthermore, London’s favourable position means you can do business with Asian and North American markets all in one day, across many time zones.
London & Partners, the business growth and destination agency for London, have their presence in Mumbai, New Delhi and Bangalore and the growing opportunity for collaboration between Indian companies, particularly those from Gujarat, and the vibrant business ecosystem of London.
With India ranking as the number one investor in London, this presents an exciting prospect for businesses seeking to expand overseas.
- London is the leading destination for Indian FDI into Europe with 174 projects, 18.2% of Indian projects to Western Europe landing in London between 2012-22.
- London is the 2nd largest recipient of Indian FDI globally over the past ten years, behind only Dubai, which received 376 projects.
- About 40% of all Indian FDI projects to the UK have gone to London over the last 10 years.
- The top 5 sectors for Indian FDI projects to London were:
- ICT & Electronics (Tech) with 51 projects
- Creative Industries (22)
- Professional Services (20)
- Financial Services (17)
- Retail (13)
London’s dynamic business ecosystem is a beacon of opportunity for entrepreneurs and businesses around the world
Despite a challenging global economic climate, London’s attractiveness as a top destination for international tech firms looking to setup an overseas operation remained resilient, with the latest data available showing that the UK capital ranked second globally for tech foreign direct investment in 2022. Notable success stories include Indian-born companies like Eruditus, Innovaccer, Zoho Inc, Ola Cabs and OYO Rooms, which have thrived after establishing their presence in London.
London’s business ecosystem has all the right ingredients an international company needs to successfully setup, grow and scale.
- London’s business ecosystem provides access to everything you need – it has the ‘financial centre’ of New York, ‘the tech’ of Silicon Valley and the policy makers of Washington, all within a 15-minute journey on public transport.
- According to Startup Genome’s 2022 Global Startup Ecosystem report – London ranks joint second with New York globally (behind Silicon Valley) in a ranking looking at the best startup ecosystems to grow a successful tech company.
- London is Europe’s largest tech hub – in 2022 the UK capital’s tech firms raised an impressive $19.8bn in total, over double any other European city.
- London is place where you can successfully exit/IPO – it has one of the world’s most international stock exchanges (500 international firms listed on the London Stock Exchange, and around half of its investors are international).
- London is home to more HQs than any other European city – providing easy access to key decision makers, customers and clients.
- Global investors continue to pump large sums of money into London VC funds – the total amount of fresh capital raised by London-based VCs in 2022 was $6.6bn, more than any previous year.
