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

Section 2: Partnership Agreement 2026

The 2026 agreement will align with the agenda of the Lady Mayor, Dame Sue Langley, and the First Minister of Scotland’s Priorities. It reflects discussions at official level between the City of London Corporation and the Scottish Government.

The City of London's Policy Chair will lead its implementation, ensuring long-term support and continuity, while the Scottish Government, with input from the Financial Services team and Scotland House London, backed by Scottish Ministers, will progress the agreement.

This updated agreement, a continuation of the 2025 collaboration, aims to build a programme of work for 2026, setting out a revised set of focus areas on Securing Investment, Building Ladders of Opportunity, Delivering Green and Sustainable Finance, and seizing opportunities within FinTech, Data and AI. The previous focus on promotions and communications has been incorporated within these areas. As with previous collaborations, this agreement has been developed in partnership with Scottish Financial Enterprise, Scottish Enterprise, Fintech Scotland, and the Global Ethical Finance Initiative to reflect the shared priorities of the Financial Services sector.

The Agreement's scope has been updated to prioritise delivering tangible outcomes in four key areas:

1. Securing Investment
2. Building Ladders of Opportunity
3. Delivering Green and Sustainable Finance
4. Seizing Opportunities within Fintech, Data, and Al

Each priority area is backed by an annually reviewed and updated work programme. While each area has targeted aims; they are interconnected, and officials will ensure progress in one supports the objectives across all priorities.

The work programme begins with an ambition statement, outlining yearly goals, followed by (Appendix 1) specific actions and initiatives to achieve these ambitions in 2026.