By Kevin O’Connor
Chairman of Leeds Financial Services Initiative and  managing partner in the city with top accountants Baker Tilly

As I was born and began my career 200 miles away in London, as well as having worked elsewhere, I have seen from outside and within the amazing growth of the financial and business services sector in Yorkshire and Humber.

The industry has been the fastest expanding area of Yorkshire’s economy and now contributes over 22 per cent to its gross domestic product, employing around 345,000 people. The core of this strength and growth is the Leeds city region, which accounts for more than 253,000 jobs, though significant  concentrations also exist in Sheffield and other Yorkshire centres.

Leeds is widely recognised by organisations and individuals, such as HM Treasury and the Lord Mayor of the City of London, as the main centre in England for financial and professional services outside London. In recent years, over 30 national and international financial firms, including my own, have moved operations to Leeds or set up offices there, for example.

Yorkshire’s strength in financial and business services is reflected in the size and number of companies here, and the depth and quality of their provision. With an important critical mass of major institutions and service providers, the sector attracts business nationally and internationally, as well as serving the county.

Through investment and acquisition, major international financial institutions -   including bank HSBC and GE Consumer Finance - have invested in the region. Other banks which have established significant presences in Yorkshire include The Bank of New York Mellon and European institutions such as Anglo Irish, Belgium’s Fortis and Swedish organisation Handelsbanken.

Several other foreign-based financial service organisations have become major employers in Yorkshire, the most notable examples being National Australia Group, following the purchase of Leeds-based Yorkshire Bank, and the Spanish Santander Group which took over Abbey’s substantial operations in Bradford and Sheffield.

Consumer financial services are particularly strong in Leeds, with leading UK-based operators in banking, credit services, home finance and insurance also having significant presences. The city houses the headquarters of bank First Direct, insurer Direct Line, and Leeds Building Society, plus major operations of banks HBOS and Royal Bank of Scotland, among other organisations.

In addition, Yorkshire as a whole contains the bases of bank Bradford & Bingley, consumer credit specialists Cattles, the Yorkshire and Skipton building societies, friendly society Engage Mutual and home credit market leaders Provident Financial.

Leeds has also become the northern hub of equity and venture capital for small and medium sized businesses across the UK, and is a major centre of investment and wealth management, stock broking and insurance services.

In addition, I have been impressed by the region’s wealth of expertise in corporate finance. Gone are the days when deals of any size had to be advised and funded through London. Now financial engineering, including the most complex, is routinely handled by local advisers with funding arranged in the region and elsewhere.

The strong Yorkshire market has seen exponential growth among professional services firms too, which also provide a natural home for corporate business once serviced only in the capital. The sector attracts income from the UK and abroad and high calibre professionals gravitate to this thriving community, which offers its services at extremely competitive rates.

Law firms, centred on Leeds and Sheffield, for example, include the substantial offices of multinational practices, such as Eversheds and DLA Piper, while home-based major competitors, like Irwin Mitchell, have expanded overseas.  

Leeds is the UK’s biggest legal centre outside London, and is established as a particular powerhouse of talent, with national centres of expertise in areas such as corporate finance and Public Private Partnership work.

The quality of education available in Yorkshire is a major attraction for businesses. Financial service employers benefit from the world class excellence of the many courses, in subjects such as banking and business economics, available at the region’s universities, for example.

Yorkshire’s business schools are among the best in the UK and there are many specialist national centres of excellence, covering law, banking, management development and credit management.
More emphasis is also being directed towards additional training, to maintain the region’s competitiveness, with Leeds housing an Academy of Finance for 16-19 year olds and one of the UK’s four newly established Financial Sector Skills Academies, which works closely with employers on training programmes to meet the sector’s needs.
Whilst the financial and business services industry has been a major driver of economic growth for Yorkshire as a whole and a major success story for Leeds in particular, it also makes the region more attractive to new businesses and firms of other types seeking to relocate. In a fast growing market, there is opportunity for good career development and progression for skilled professionals who find the local housing, social and cultural attractions meet their lifestyle needs.

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