The technology hub will act as the UK headquarters of Pontaq and provides its portfolio of firms access to funds and mentoring and office space
India and the UK have jointly set up a new technology hub in London with the aim to promote bilateral investments in the areas of smart cities, financial technology (fintech), blockchain and artificial intelligence (AI).
The tech hub was inaugurated on Monday with the purpose to promote cross-border transfer of technology in initial stage businesses between the two nations.
Described as a first-of-its-kind partnership between a business district and a venture capital (VC) fund, the hub has been established at the new Royal Albert Dock business district in East London, by UK-based VC fund Pontaq.
The hub is being created as part of a 1.7 billion pounds investment plan and phase-wise development of East London.
To nurture tech start-ups
Speaking on the development, Dr Mohan Kaul, Chairman, Pontaq, said, “Brexit or no Brexit, Indian tech companies will always choose the UK as one of the locations of choice. Both India and the UK are among the top five in the world when it comes to tech start-ups and with this new hub, we feel Indian companies can find a lot of traction and space to go global.”
Founded in 2018 as a VC fund that is focused on India-UK corridor, Pontaq has nine firms as part of its portfolio and is expecting about 40 others to join the fund in the coming three years.
The technology hub will act as the UK headquarters of Pontaq and provides its portfolio of firms access to funds and mentoring and office space.
The hub was inaugurated by Graham Stuart, investment minister, UK and Ruchi Ghanashyam, India’s High Commissioner to the UK.
Speaking at the occasion, Stuart hailed London as the leading financial centre of the world with world-class professional services and best-in-class regulation.
