Financial services: partnership agreement between Scottish Government and City of London Corporation

Scottish Government and the City of London
Partnership Agreement 2026: Ambitions and Mechanisms

Section 1: Introduction and Executive Summary

Scotland is a nation with a track record of innovation and excellence in Financial Services. A nation which led the world in the industrial revolution and is now seizing the advantages of Net Zero, Data and AI. The City of London, itself an ancient institution and governing body of the Square Mile, plays an important role in representing, championing and supporting the development of the Financial and Professional Services sector across all four nations of the United Kingdom.

Through working collaboratively, the City of London can support Scotland's ambition to grow a modern, thriving and sustainable financial centre that builds on a shared heritage, and which supports economic growth across the UK. The City of London Corporation (CoLC) can widen access to global investors, collaborate on shared initiatives, and amplify engagement with the UK Government on issues of common interest, ensuring the financial and economic benefits of a thriving Financial Services industry are shared.

The support of the Scottish Government (SG) is beneficial to the City of London Corporation, which has long recognised the value of Scotland's world class financial services centre, with Scotland offering distinctive specialisms and strengths in banking, asset management, pensions and FinTech. The Scottish Government also has strong reach with investors, with an ability to engage with national and international firms and institutions rapidly, and a strong convening role to support the delivery of deals and transactions.

This partnership between the City of London Corporation and the Scottish Government has flourished in recent years — benefitting from the commitment of successive Lord Mayors, Policy Chairs and Scottish Ministers. It is based on a shared understanding that the financial sectors of Scotland and London can gain from deep cooperation and collaboration.

The Scottish Government and the City of London Corporation renewed this Partnership Agreement in January 2024 and again in 2025, committing both parties to a collaborative work programme that will maintain focus and momentum.

The successes of last year’s agreement are clear – with the Scottish Investment Summit a key highlight, alongside the Edinburgh Finance Festival, which brought together both institutions and key investors to develop and deliver opportunities, as well as joint work to shape the development of government initiatives to support investment and wider financial services.

This edition of the agreement, under the Lady Mayor, deepens this focus, refreshes key elements and commits to growing investment and building ladders of opportunity for those working within the sector and beyond.