CENTRE FOR FINANCE, INNOVATION
AND TECHNOLOGY

Leading the world in financial innovation

CFIT are leading the drive to enhance the UK’s position as a global leader in financial innovation by bringing together the best minds from across the UK to identify key challenges faced by industry and create solutions that serve individuals, business and the wider-economy.

Discover more about us

How we benefit financial innovation in the UK

CFIT unlocks innovation and drives market development by bringing together leading experts from government, regulators, technology innovation hubs, financial institutions and regulators to co-design solutions to key challenges across industry and the economy. These ‘Coalitions’ test solutions and strategic initiatives before a formal rollout of our data driven reports into our findings.

For Public Institutions

Improve policy outcomes with direct industry insight
Accelerate adoption via real-world validation
De-risk innovation through early research, prototyping and user testing

For Industry

Drive innovation that is commercially viable and policy-ready
Reduce market risk by aligning with government direction
Gain policy clarity to guide investment decisions

Government supported initiatives we’ve worked on to drive financial innovation

Global Competitiveness

We are strengthening the UK’s leadership in financial and digital technologies

Increased Investment

Greater private sector confidence in UK innovation aligned with national priorities

Smart Public Services

Government supported initiatives built with real-world input and user-centric design

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Digital Verification Coalition

CFIT’s second Coalition examined how to fight Economic Crime through Digital Verification, and we published our findings at the Coalition Showcase. This industry-wide coalition has focused on a Digital Company ID that will fight economic crime and, according to the Government, contribute to a £600 million annual boost to the UK economy, from the widespread adoption of secure digital identities.

Key Findings

40%

Fraud accounts for over 40% of all crime across England and Wales.

£1.7 billion

CFIT’s industry-wide coalition brought together a 70-strong unique group of experts across sectors Digital Company ID could lead to an annual reduction in compliance costs of £1.7 billion

50%

of SMEs report financial struggles

1.2 Million

There were over 1.2 million incidents of fraud committed in the UK in 2023.

60%

SMEs regularly find it difficult to obtain timely and affordable finance, with research estimating a £22 billion funding gap

£6.8 Billion

We found that enhanced data sharing could provide up to an extra 150,000 consumers annually with tailored financial advice

Open Finance Coalition

CFIT’s first Coalition focused on Open Finance and published its blueprint in February 2024, highlighting the positive impact of wider data access to increase SME finance and improve financial inclusion. It has shown how Debt Advice Charities could enhance financial outcomes for vulnerable consumers across the UK by 40% and this work has been taken forward by Citizens Advice. It also addressed the challenges of access to SME lending through additional data sets resulting in an increase of automated lending of 25% and a path forward to realising the advantages of Open Finance.

The FCA has since prioritised Open Finance in their 2025-2030 strategy, considering initially the impact on SME finance.

Key Findings

18%

of SMEs report financial struggles

£30.5 billion

Research has found that delivering Open Finance and personal data mobility could boost UK GDP by £30.5 billion

£22 billion

SMEs regularly find it difficult to obtain timely and affordable finance, with research estimating a £22 billion funding gap

150,000

We found that enhanced data sharing could provide up to an extra 150,000 consumers annually with tailored financial advice

Join a Coalition

Let us know if you are interested in joining a CFIT coalition by entering your email below, and the coalition of interest. A member of our team will get back to you with more information.

Our Financial Innovation partners

CFIT is partnering with some of the world’s leading financial institutions, fintech companies and industry bodies in our drive to scale financial innovation.