We have been busy in the leadup to the General Election. CEO & founder Santosh Sahu appeared on BBC Wake Up to Money on the eve of the election, speaking about what he wanted to see for businesses from the incoming government.
Separately, Santosh commented:
“The priority for the new Government in supporting the UK’s tech and startup sector should be to increase funding in high-growth enterprises with potential. The biggest challenge our startup landscape is facing is the exodus of businesses from the UK to the US, with 24% of UK healthtech SMEs preferring to launch in the US rather than the UK.
The allure of Silicon Valley is in part due to the funding available — US financial schemes through agencies such as DARPA and NASA, have been instrumental in Silicon Valley’s growth. However, we do not just need more money from the Government but from investors. VCs in the US last year invested $170bn in startups, compared to $22bn in the UK. Supporting tax-efficient incentives, such as EIS, SEIS and VCT schemes for investors can drive more investment in our nation’s exciting startups.
Despite the UK seeing the third-most healthtech investment globally, the US is seen as a markedly more attractive market for startups. In addition to funding, this is because of a more supportive regulatory environment — 46% of healthtech companies have removed products from the UK market due to regulatory uncertainty. Healthtech today in the UK is comparable to where fintech was over a decade ago, and it was regulations such as Open Banking and a regulatory sandbox that facilitated the UK becoming a world leader in fintech. This is something the Government has not yet addressed — and with Labour’s calls for a more digital, interconnected NHS, they will need to look at regulations that actually facilitate competition, collaboration, and interoperability to accelerate the UK’s economy, and create a more favourable environment for startups.”