Britain is set to be the world’s fastest-growing advanced economy this year – due in large part to an impressive vaccine rollout and comprehensive reopening in recent days – with the IMF’s latest forecasts predicting the UK will grow 7% this year.

With the UK GDP upgraded and Europe’s start-up scene booming, venture capitalists are paying close attention to the astounding rate at which innovation is accelerating across the continent. According to Dealroom’s latest report, Europe is the fastest growing major region by venture capital investment – outpacing both the US and China – with investment in European startups having grown by 2.9x YoY to €49B in the first six months of 2021 alone.

A large part of this growth must be credited to the global transitioning to digital, which is allowing startups to scale faster than ever before. With this rapid expansion comes a host of new opportunities for venture capitalists to take advantage of in 2021.

Luke Davis, CEO of IW Capital discusses the most dynamic opportunities for venture capitalists in 2021:

Pet Tech
“The pandemic and its series of lockdowns have brought with it a surge in the pet sector, as consumers turned to their four-legged companions to remedy the isolation, loneliness and boredom of the past year. We’re already seeing a number of creative new tech companies emerging to answer this consumer need – ranging from pet insurance and veterinary software to healthcare and nutrition, to pet rentals such as Borrow My Doggy, which is one we at IW are proud to support. There is ample opportunity for further innovation across the sector and expect to see demand for these products continue well into 2022 and beyond.”

Financial Tech
“Fintech routinely attracts a lot of hype, but this year has seen an astounding level of investment pouring into the sector. As consumers find themselves increasingly attracted to the offers of non-traditional banks, trading and currency exchange platforms, fintech has well and truly claimed its place in the mainstream. Any investor ignoring this sector for any longer does so to their own detriment.”

Retail Tech
“As companies scrambled to upgrade their systems at the beginning of the pandemic, cashless payments, food delivery and contactless service have well and truly become part of the permanent retail landscape. Companies in this space began turning out some impressive products even before the pandemic. At IW, we have been investing since 2016 in Ubamarket – a pioneering retail app that provides supermarkets with their own white label ‘scan-and-go’ in-store app.”

Health Tech
“The coronavirus pandemic has also fast-tracked innovation in the health tech space, as pharmacies, wellness providers and doctor’s waiting rooms became much more difficult to access. As consumers quickly adapted to virtual processes of attending medical appointments and acquiring prescriptions, innovations in this sector are no longer regarded as a ‘nice to have’ – they’re now fundamental. An excellent example of a company excelling in this space is SimplyMeds – an e-pharmacy platform that serves both private consumers and NHS professionals that we at IW just announced investment in last month. We’re expecting very exciting things to continue emerging from this sector.”

“Reopening, record levels of investment, consumers looking to spend and the ambition of the entrepreneurial economy all point in the direction of a summer of growth. The 20’s could well be the decade of the small business, making it even more vital to the UK economy than it is now.”