Fintech moves drive surge in central London office space

Two fintechs moving into larger offices in the capital helped central London office take-up surge in November, increasing over 30 percent on the month, according to new figures.

Figures from commercial property services and investment company CBRE reveal office take-up increased 31 percent to 900,000 square feet between October and November, while the year-on-year uplift was five percent. The drive was led by the banking and finance industry.

The largest deal in November, says the report, saw digital bank Monzo acquire 120,000 square feet at Broadwalk House, in the City, near to Liverpool Street station.

Monzo's move sees the company treble the size of its London HQ. It will begin moving staff early next year out of its current 40,000 square feet London HQ.

Broadwalk House is owned by British Land and Singapore's sovereign wealth fund GIC.

David Lockyer, head of British Land's Broadgate, said: "We are seeing strong occupier demand for well-located, high quality office space. Monzo's decision to relocate is a sign of confidence in the long-term appeal of London."

The second biggest deal in November was Checkout.com, the payment technology company, occupying 63,900 sq ft at Wenlock Works in London’s Old Street, tripling the size of its current headquarters.

Checkout.com, founded in 2012, plans to expand to employ 1,000 people by the end of 2020.

Overall, CBRE said banking and finance drove the majority of the increase in office take-up, ahead of the creative industries, which jumped 19 percent.

Kevin McCauley, CBRE, Head of UK Commercial Research, said: “Consistent growth in the fintech sector has been a notable feature in the London economy over the past few years, which has converted into a surge of office take-up in the last month.”

“Overall demand remains strong, with an evidently healthy appetite for central London office space characterising the end of the year.”