Tech Nation has been a powerhouse over the last decade, supporting startups such as Monzo and Revolut achieve significant success. The organisation announced its plans to cease operations after losing a £12.09 million Digital Growth Grant to Barclays Bank, citing that it could not continue without government funding.

The report, How to Build a Scale Up, predicts that the UK tech sector will be worth $2.6 trillion in the next decade from its current value at $1 trillion, declaring that a $4 trillion ecosystem is achievable if greater opportunities to scale are created.

Tech Nation and research director Dr George Windsor observed that scale ups in the UK are valued just under $600 billion over the last decade, and there is now an expectation return the same rate of value. Windsor notes the microtrends in the sector, touching on the receding investment in 2022 and slower rate of unicorn creation.

“There are tailwinds, and the inevitable headwinds in realising continued high growth. Investors have started to pull back over the last six months, a slowdown both reflective of broader economic trends, and in part contributing to them,” said Windsor.

“But, future unicorn ($250m-$800m valued companies) numbers have risen, with 45% growth from 2021 to 2022 - suggesting one of a number of phenomena. The two theories of most interest are that the UK is effective at supporting companies to scale, but not to the high end of the value spectrum, or that there is a glut of unicorns to come, on the basis of many companies being well poised to gain value and breach the billion dollar mark.”

The report from Tech Nation discusses the conditions of growth in the UK for the last ten years, what tech firms can do in response, and how tech companies can change to accelerate growth. The report highlights goals for the sector to boost diversity, prioritise value realisation, and address financial accessibility.

Tech Nation CEO Gerard Grech commented: “The last decade of UK tech has been an incredible success story. One in which the UK is now third in the world for tech investment, after the US and China, but there is much more we can do and value to be unlocked if we create the right conditions for future growth over the coming years, as this report shows. We urge ecosystem stakeholders, investors and government to continue optimising the business environment for tech businesses, from opening up new pathways for talent to increasing sources of funding.”