Allica Bank tops the 2023 Deloitte UK Tech Fast 50 rankings

Allica Bank tops the 2023 Deloitte UK Tech Fast 50 rankings

• Allica Bank, an online banking platform, has topped Deloitte’s 2023 UK Technology Fast 50 awards, a ranking of the UK’s 50 fastest growing technology companies;
• The London-based bank reported an average four-year growth of 85,438% to the year 2022/23, the third-largest growth rate in the 26-year history of the awards;
• Fast 50 companies generated a combined revenue of £801 million in 2022/23, and employ 14,956 people, with an average revenue growth of 5,473% over a four-year period, a 19% increase on previous year.

Deloitte has today announced the winners of the 2023 UK Technology Fast 50 awards. The awards recognise and rank the 50 fastest-growing technology companies in the UK, based on average revenue growth over a four-year period, and are sponsored by Multiverse, Oracle NetSuite, BGF and HSBC Innovation Banking.

The 2023 Fast 50 winners have a collective average four-year growth rate of 5,473%, total revenues of £801 million in 2022/23, and employ almost 15,000 people in the UK.

Allica Bank named overall winner

Fintech company Allica Bank is the overall winner of the 2023 UK Technology Fast 50 awards, having achieved an average four-year growth rate of 85,438% to the year 2022/23, the third-largest average growth rate in the 26-year history of the awards. Launching in 2019, the London-based business employs more than 450 people and specialises in banking for small and medium-sized businesses, delivered through technology.

In second place is Yoto, the London-based software company specialising in interactive audio for children, achieving an average revenue growth of 66,572%. Hypervolt, manufacturer of electric vehicle charging technology, ranked third with an average revenue growth rate of 19,236%. Hypervolt is also the inaugural winner of the CleanTech award, which recognises the contribution made by the Fast 50’s environmental technology companies towards meeting the UK’s net zero target.

Each of this year’s top three companies come from a different sector: fintech, software, and environmental tech. Software remains the leading sector, accounting for 54% of all winners.

Kiren Asad, lead partner for the Deloitte UK Technology Fast 50 programme, commented: “The impressive growth amongst this year’s Fast 50 winners demonstrates the tenacity of the UK’s technology sector as it cements itself amongst the top locations for venture capital investment globally.

“While businesses continue to navigate a turbulent economic landscape, the UK’s technology sector remains a symbol of resilience, talent, innovation and competitiveness. I would like to extend my congratulations to all of the winners.”

Richard Davies, CEO of Allica Bank said: “We are about people and data. Over the last three years we’ve built out significant in-house capabilities both in engineering and product. This is a must for the target segment we serve, which combines complex needs and volume. This leads to poor value, inconvenient, and impersonal service from the incumbent players. So we are building unique, proprietary software to solve these customers’ needs at scale.

“We know that our sole purpose is to provide a full-service alternative to high street banks for established SMEs - having total clarity of our target segment is critical. And it is super rewarding for us to feel we are making a difference to businesses that make up a third of the UK economy and employment.”
 

Capital raising and AI dominate CEO agenda

In a survey of CEOs and executives of the Fast 50 winners, almost two-thirds (63%) highlighted that capital raising is their core objective for the next two years. In addition, 67% of respondents said they are either actively trying to raise or have tried to raise investment in the past 12 months. Capital raising remains challenging, however, with half (49%) of businesses claiming to have seen a decrease in total equity investment secured this year.

Meanwhile, 79% of respondents expect artificial intelligence (AI) to have an impact on their markets or proposition, while 18% of companies named automation and the impact of AI as core to their business objectives over the next two years.

Asad added: “It’s clear that the nation’s start-ups remain committed to innovation despite the economic headwinds. Many of these businesses will be looking for new ways to raise capital in a cautious investment landscape, while also remaining agile to new technologies and external factors that may change the way they operate.”
 

Capital continues to carry the torch for UK tech start-ups

Three-quarters (76%) of this year’s Fast 50 winners are headquartered in London, including nine of the top ten. In addition, of the 11 ranked fintech businesses, ten are based in the capital, including Freetrade, an online investment platform (fourth overall with a four-year growth rate of 18,090%) and YuLife, insurance and financial services provider (eighth overall with a four-year growth rate of 4,832%).

This year’s Women in Leadership category winner, Diginius (15th overall with a four-year growth rate of 1,768%) also hails from the capital.

Outside of London, standout performances include Scotland-based wellbeing and fitness app, The Original Fit Factory (fifth overall with a four-year growth rate of 14,854%), and South West-based online marketplace platform OnBuy, which returns to the ranking for the third consecutive year. Midlands-based Warwick Acoustics, an audio hardware company, made the top half (ranked 24th overall with a four-year growth rate of 1,167%).

Asad said: “London continues to be a breeding ground for the UK’s fastest-growing tech companies. Yet, while the city is known for being a global hub for fintech, what is particularly impressive is the diversification that we are seeing, with a variety of sub-sectors choosing London as their home, including software and environmental tech.

“Despite London’s dominance, growth across the UK regions remains strong. From Scotland to the south coast, the ingredients are there to enable the UK’s technology start-up sector to thrive.”

Ends

2023 UK Technology Fast 50

About the Deloitte UK Technology Fast 50

The Deloitte UK Technology Fast 50 is one of the UK’s foremost technology award programmes. Now in its 26th year, it is a ranking of the country’s 50 fastest-growing technology companies, based on revenue growth over the last four years. The UK Fast 50 awards are all about growth driven by leading intellectual property and are a celebration of innovation and entrepreneurship. Previous winners have come from across the UK, are both large and small, and included some of the most dynamic players in all areas of technology, from IoT to biotech, digital media technology to life sciences, FinTech to software and clean energy to telecommunications.
For more information visit www.fast50.co.uk
 

Deloitte UK Technology Fast 50 eligibility criteria

The parent company must be UK-owned and have its headquarters in the UK;
The company must have base-year (year 1) operating revenues of £42,000 (€50,000) and a current year (year 4) operating revenue of at least £850,000 (€1,000,000).
NB: the accounts for the base-year must have an accounting period ending between 1 June 2019 and 31 May 2020; and the accounts for the most recent financial year must have an accounting period ending between 1 June 2022 and 31 May 2023.

The Fast 50 Women in Leadership category recognises those companies within the Technology Fast 50 that are either led by a female* CEO or have a founding team comprised of at least 50% women. The ranking will still be judged based on percentage revenue growth over the last four years and entry qualifications are the same as the UK Tech Fast 50.
* The terms ‘women’ and ‘female’ are taken to include all those who self-identify as women or female and engage with their current employers as such.
The CleanTech category is new to 2023 and recognises climate technology companies within the Technology Fast 50 for their contribution to the UK’s net zero target. Eligible companies are those who meet the Fast 50 entry criteria and produce or use technology, tools, products and services which support emission reductions; lead to more circular economies through the recycling, regeneration, and reuse of resources; and promote well-being for people, communities, and nature through sustainable agriculture, clean air and water, resilient communities and cities, and the preservation and regeneration of natural ecosystems.
 

About Multiverse

In collaboration with Deloitte, all members of the community have free access to leverage unused levy funds to either upskill and help retain their current employees (across digital/data/leadership/transformation paths) or create diverse, equitable routes into roles for early talent through professional development programmes.

Multiverse is a startup on a mission to create a diverse group of future leaders by building an outstanding alternative to university and corporate training. They offer professional development programmes, funded via the levy, to people looking to grow their careers.

Multiverse works with over 500 enterprise businesses, helping them embrace digital transformation, close skills gaps and develop a diverse talent pipeline. Your employees will benefit from individualized coaching, applied learning, and a community of social, networking and leadership opportunities. Reach out to learn more about the free development opportunities available to your company, as a member of the UK Technology Fast 50 community.
 

About Oracle NetSuite

Oracle NetSuite’s cloud business software suite is the top choice of technology companies who understand that the key to unlocking and managing growth is a back office system that can address today’s challenges while providing the critical foundation for future expansion.
Today over 36,000 companies trust NetSuite to run their mission critical business processes from accounting, procurement and HR through to marketing and sales. NetSuite’s track record as the business system of choice for high-growth tech companies is unmatched. NetSuite isn’t just for start-ups, companies of all sizes benefit from its comprehensive, global financial and accounting core that makes international expansion straightforward; improved visibility across the business; and increased efficiency from eliminating manual processes and disparate systems.
 

About BGF

Since 2011, BGF has invested £3.8 billion in over 550 companies. Of all the sectors we invest in, technology accounts for the largest share in our portfolio.
We have backed over 100 technology businesses and provided close to £500 million of capital to support the growth plans of ambitious businesses across a range of technology sub-sectors such as mobile apps, managed services, cloud computing, climate tech, life sciences and much more.
With 15 offices across the UK and Ireland, BGF makes initial investments of between £1-20 million for a minority equity stake. We have worked with some of the UK’s most exciting technology brands, from unicorns such as Gousto and Paddle to ground-breaking innovators such as Oxa (autonomous vehicles), AND Digital (cloud computing) and MyZone (wearable tech).
Technology remains an incredibly exciting sector and BGF’s investment team looks forward to backing many more innovative tech businesses in the years ahead.

About HSBC Innovation Banking

HSBC Innovation Bank Limited provides commercial banking & lending services, expertise and insights to the technology, life science and healthcare, private equity and venture capital industries. HSBC Innovation Bank Limited is a subsidiary of HSBC Group, benefiting from its stability, strong credit rating and international reach to help fuel its growth.

About Deloitte

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For more information, please visit www.deloitte.co.uk