June 2016 certainly marked Britain off the EU but with that came unprecedented possibility of a negative effect on Britain’s sector. Whether that happens or not is a topic for later discussion but Sweden is certainly making efforts to become a hotspot in the European Fin-tech sector.
Factors in Sweden’s favor:
- An established track record for attracting investments: Highest number of fin-tech investments per capita in the last 5 years within Europe.
- A relative ease of access to the government authorities that aids businesses create a well balanced and favorable ecosystem.
- Sweden is on its way to become the first country to become a cashless society by 2030.
- Formation of the Swedish Financial Technology Association (SweFinTech) that would ease the overall regulatory environment for FinTechs (including upcoming startups as well).
But according to me, if the speculation is true, it is the timing that will matter for Sweden to actually beat UK to top spot. Brexit has ironically opened the floodgates in the form of a wild card entry for many such entities to pierce the European market.
Reference – http://www.newsbtc.com/2017/02/19/sweden-post-brexit-fintech-destination/; https://www.cryptocoinsnews.com/sweden-see-opening-brexit-boost-fintech/