The government has also commissioned an annual State of UK FinTech report on key metrics for investors.

The government will launch a network of regional fintech envoys, and has agreed with the joint money laundering steering group that it will modernise the guidance on electronic ID verification to support the use of technology to access financial services.

Imran Gulamhuseiunwala, global FinTech leader at EY, said the firm has been asked to work with the Treasury and Innovate Finance to produce an annual census of FinTech companies operating in the UK.

‘The census will provide a crucial fact-base for investors, policymakers and other stakeholders to understand the industry and to chart its growth. It will also allow us to compare the UK industry to that in other leading FinTech hubs and highlight areas where the UK needs to improve, drawing on best practice which we may wish to emulate,’ Gulamhuseiunwala said.

EY research for the Treasury earlier this year showed that in 2015 the sector drew in £6.6bn in revenues and attracted around £524m in investment. With around 61,000 people employed in the sector (about 5% of the total financial services workforce), more people work in UK FinTech than in New York FinTech, or in the combined FinTech workforce of Singapore, Hong Kong and Australia.

‘The government has made clear its commitment to helping maintain the UK’s leading place in the international FinTech industry. We look forward to working with the Treasury and Innovate Finance over the coming months on developing the scope and content of the census to help provide the data and analysis that will help ensure this happens and that the UK FinTech industry continues to thrive,’ Gulamhuseiunwala said.