South Wales Financial Centre of Excellence
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South Wales Financial Centre of Excellence 2019 May 21 Withdrawn gov.uk/ukti 1 2019 May Welcome to21 South Wales Welcome to South Wales – this region, famed for its natural beauty, is a major centre for financial services with blue chip companies running substantial operational functions here, taking advantageWithdrawn of the area’s welcoming environment and attractive lifestyle. 2 South Wales Financial Centre of Excellence Close proximity to London, low overheads and a strong supply of highly skilled staff makes it a thriving financial and business services region. 21,000 The South Wales region has a population of There are 95,600 jobs in the financial, business 1.8 million within an overall area of and professional services sector2019 in the South Wales region, with financial and insurance approximately 1,303 sq. miles and consists companies alone accounting for 21,000. * of 12 counties; Blaenau Gwent, Bridgend, Caerphilly, Cardiff, Neath Port Talbot, Merthyr Tydfil, Monmouthshire, Newport, Rhondda Cynon Taff, Swansea, Torfaen and Vale of Glamorgan and includes the cities of May Cardiff, Newport and Swansea. With its blend of vibrant cities, stunning coastlines 31 and diverse countryside, South Wales offers 31 FTSE 100 companies have outstanding quality of life, a growing 21headquarters, major corporate economy and excellent infrastructure. centres or other associated operational functions in the South The region has a world-class talent pool Wales area.* and competitively priced commercial real estate, making it the ideal location to establish, nurture and grow your business. It also benefits from exceptional access to London, the rest of the UK and beyond. £2.2bn South Wales is well positioned to take advantage of the movement of jobs, from London or overseas, as it offers the Financial and insurance assurance of a politically stable UK location activities contributed £2.2 at a very competitive cost. In recent years, billion to the UK economy in Withdrawn terms of GVA. ** many global companies such as Deloitte, Atradius and GM Financial UK, have chosen to relocate their operations here. * Business Register Employment Survey, Office for National Statistics, 2013 ** ONS, Regional Gross Value Added, December 2014 gov.uk/ukti 3 Financial hub South Wales is a major hub for financial and business services in the UK. There are up to 1 million sq. ft. of new Grade A offices currently under 2019 construction in Cardiff alone to support the industry. South Wales offers a talented labour pool supplemented by specialised training within Welsh academic institutions. May 31 FTSE 100 companies have 21headquarters, major corporate centres or other associated operational functions in the South Wales area.* This creates opportunities for other financial and business services enterprises considering relocation, as there is an existing pool of qualified labour as well as high numbers of graduates and excellent commuter links. Withdrawn * Business Register Employment Survey, Office for National Statistics, 2013 4 South Wales Financial Centre of Excellence Major employers Key locations 75% of all employment in the financial and South Wales has a number of locations business services sector in Wales is hosting clusters of financial and business conducted in the South Wales region. ** services companies. There is a population of over 1.8 million people within the region, Industry strengths with a further 1.8 million living in the bordering counties, offering a continuous The concentration of the financial and flow of new talent for companies in the business services sector in South Wales region. means that there are substantial operations 2019 being conducted here across a multitude of areas, with particular strengths in insurance, knowledge process servicing and legal 3.6m services. There is access to a catchment of 3.6 million people in the region andMay surrounding counties Cardiff Airport is the national airport for Wales and gateway to the country Over Over21 Over 1 million 17 50 6 900 Passengers Airline operators Direct routes Routes to major hub Routes available airports when taking connecting routes Torfaen Swansea Population Population 91,600 241,300 Caerphilly Newport Population Population 179,900 146,800 WithdrawnBridgend Population 141,200 Cardiff Population 354,300 * ONS 2014 ** Welsh Government Statistics, Employee Jobs by Priority Sector, 2013 gov.uk/ukti 5 Cardiff CASE STUDY - Cardiff Cardiff is the capital city of Wales. The city is the focal point for both national and local government, business and commerce for Wales, and many renowned names in the financial and business services sector. Financial, insurance and business service activities generated over 40,000 jobs for Cardiff in 2013.* 2019 It’s plain sailing in South Wales Cardiff International Airport is within 30 minutes’ drive of the city centre, offering Admiral Group is a FTSE 100 company domestic and international flights, headquartered in Cardiff. The company is including regular flights to and from worth over £4 billion and employs over London. Other destinations served directly 5,000 people in South Wales to conduct and regularly from Cardiff include Dublin, the insuranceMay giant’s entire operations – from sales to marketing to HR. Admiral has Amsterdam, Munich and Paris. grown organically from 60 to 5,000 staff The city houses an internet exchange (one over the last twenty years and has recruited locally to fill those posts. Admiral of only four UK cities outside of London to 21 has won a number of awards, such as, in have one), which means that businesses 2014, 2nd place in the Sunday Times 100 located here can take advantage of lower Best Companies to Work. costs and increased data resilience. Admiral has big plans for the future, as Companies include: shown by their 2014 move to a purpose- – AXA – Legal & General built, 220,000 sq. ft. Grade A office building – Admiral Group – Marsh Insurance in Central Cardiff that will house over – Atradius – Principality 2,000 of their employees. – Barclays Building Society HR Director Ceri Assiratti says: “Cardiff won – British Gas – RBS our hearts. People don’t always recognise – FirstSource – Willis Insurance Wales as a great place to come to until they – Lloyds Bank get here, and being only two hours from London, Cardiff offers us the benefit of Withdrawn being close to the UK’s financial centre but without the added cost.” admiralgroup.co.uk * Welsh Government Statistics, Employee Jobs by Priority Sector, 2013. 6 South Wales Financial Centre of Excellence CASE STUDY - Cardiff Newport World class environment Newport is the gateway to Wales. In recent years, Newport has become internationally Atradius provides trade credit insurance, recognised as a host city for big events, surety and collections services worldwide having accommodated the NATO summit in through its strategic presence in 50 2014 and the Ryder Cup in 2010. countries. Atradius has access to credit information on 200 million companies Newport is in the midst of a £2 billion worldwide with a turnover of €1.6 billion. regeneration plan labelled ‘The 2020 Atradius was one of the first companies to Masterplan’ which will include2019 a number of recognise the potential of Cardiff as a centre regeneration projects including 390,000 of excellence for financial, professional and sq. ft. (36,230 sq. metres) of commercial business services, where they now employ property and leisure space at Friars Walk in around 500 people. The company values the the city centre. high quality lifestyle and well educated and adaptable workforce, amongst the strengths The Celtic MayManor Resort in Newport has of the Welsh capital. been described as being one of Europe’s finest destinations, and has been voted HR Manager Anne Middleton says: “As a M&IT ‘Best UK Hotel’ for the last four years world-class company, we wanted a first-class site. We found it in Cardiff Bay – one of 21and C&IT ‘Top UK Conference Hotel’ for five Europe’s most innovative and original consecutive years. waterfront developments. The Welsh capital and the surrounding areas offer a diverse, The city is also home to the National high quality lifestyle and a well-educated, Software Academy, a new partnership adaptable workforce capable of responding between academia, Welsh Government and to the challenges of continuous change.” industry leaders to address the shortfall of qualified, industry-ready software Atradius forms part of Grupo Catalana engineers. They combine teaching and Occidente (GCO.MC), one of the leading training in a bespoke commercial/IT insurers in Spain and worldwide in credit environment, to produce sought after insurance. graduates with industrial experience who atradius.co.uk will be recognised as leaders in their field. Key UK government offices, such as Withdrawn Companies House, the Intellectual Property Office and the Office for National Statistics, who together employ over 2,000 people, are located here. The Intellectual Property Office and the Office for National Statistics relocated to Newport from London to take gov.uk/ukti 7 CASE STUDY - Newport advantage of the city’s local talent pool and No need to compare low operating costs. Apart from the financial and business services sector, the Go Compare is a British financial services other large industry sectors here are comparison website. It provides advanced manufacturing and ICT. All of comparison details for a multitude of these provide services for business and financial products as well as energy and that means the local area provides a range household products. The company is now owned by Esure and was the first of relevant skills. comparison site to focus on features2019 of Companies include: insurance products rather than just listing prices. This led to the company being – GoCompare invited to become a member of the British – Admiral Insurance Insurance Brokers Association (BIBA). In – Lloyds Bank 2013, Gocompare.com reported a turnover – Steria of £110 million, up from £105 million in – Henry Howard Finance 2012, withMay profits before tax rising to £25 – Target Group million, from £24 million.