Importance of IP protection as London and UK tech sector sees record year of VC funding

It was announced last week that total venture capital (VC) funding for London’s tech companies rose by an unprecedented 87% last year to reach $9.7bn, over double that raised in Berlin and triple that raised in Paris. 

The UK is now the fastest growing tech ecosystem in Europe, and the UK tech sector recently overtook the US for foreign investment per capita. The surge was primarily fuelled by investments in fin-tech, AI and clean energy, all areas in which the Mathys & Squire team has significant expertise and where we are seeing increasing numbers of patent applications being filed by clients.

In such fast-growing sectors, establishing a carefully thought out and commercially sensitive intellectual property (IP) strategy is key. Not only will this avoid costly mistakes occurring down the line (often only being spotted at the 11th hour before a deal or investment is about to go through), but an effective IP strategy should add value to the business and help drive revenue – whether it be through locking in supply chains or keeping competitors ‘off the grass’.

The team at Mathys & Squire has years of real-world, commercial experience in creating such IP strategies and can really help to increase the growth and value of such businesses by making their IP work harder for them.

Contact us to find out how we can help you to maximise the value of your business’ IP.

An extended version of this article, with advice for early-stage startups, was published in Startups Magazine in February 2020.