The figures from Innovate Finance show that the US is ranked first with $22bn investments while Indonesia came third with $3.3bn

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The British fintech sector ranked second globally in 2020 by attracting $4.1bn investments. (Credit: S K from Pixabay)

The UK’s fintech sector had attracted $4.1bn in venture capital and growth private equity investments in 2020, to rank second globally, according to a report from Innovate Finance.

Britain is only behind the US which saw an investment of $22bn made in its fintech sector during 2020. The US saw a 29% growth in the investments compared to the previous year.

For the UK, the total fintech investments in 2020 were down by 9% compared to 2019. The decline was due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the economic challenges, said Innovate Finance, which is the industry body that represents UK fintech sector.

The 2020 investments in the British fintech sector had come through a total of 408 deals. Revolut registered the largest fintech investment for a UK-based firm in 2020, when it raised $580m through a Series D round.

Europe saw a total of $9.3bn investments in the fintech sector. Germany ranked second in the continent after the UK with $1.4bn investments coming from 71 deals.

Sweden raised $1.3bn while France registered $522m in fintech investments during 2020.

Innovate Finance CEO Charlotte Crosswell said: “Given the tough and turbulent year we’ve experienced, it’s very encouraging to see strength and resilience in the global FinTech sector’s ability to raise capital.

“Now more than ever, we should celebrate the strong position the UK has carved out at an international level. We are a world-leading FinTech hub, and as the figures reveal, the epicentre of FinTech in Europe – despite the many challenges thrown our way.”

According to Innovate Finance, the global fintech sector secured $44bn in investments through 3,052 deals. The total investments in 2020 were up by 14% compared to the previous year.

Ranking behind the US and the UK is Indonesia with $3.3bn, while India secured the fourth position by attracting $2.6bn investments.

The largest fintech investments in 2020 are the $3bn secured by Indonesian payments and ride-hailing platform Gojek, $850m raised by US-based payments firm Stripe, and $700m pocketed by US challenger bank Chime.