If you are investment planning in Cheshire or Oswestry, new data has revealed Europe’s foreign direct investment (FDI) hotspots.
The latest European Attractiveness Survey, conducted by EY (formerly Ernst & Young) found that whilst there was a decline in overall FDI in 2025, financial services recorded a 21% increase across the continent.
Amongst the leading countries, the UK remained top, drawing 85 projects, up 16% year on year. It now accounts for almost 25% of all European FDI projects in financial services. In this sector, official data showed jobs rising 82% to 4,372. France was in second place, attracting 45 and gaining 50% over the same period. Germany brought in 25, seeing a 22% increase over the year.
Commenting on the UK’s strong position, EY’s Financial Services Leader, Martina Keane, said that London continues to woo world class talent and significant amounts of global capital, with international businesses looking to build and scale drawn to the capital. The report also emphasised the strong growth trajectories of competitor regions such as Poland, France and Luxembourg over the last 10 years.
Elsewhere, the research identified an increase in US-backed projects. Much of this was focused on financial services investments which increased significantly in 2025. The UK was the leading recipient of US investment, which totalled 29 projects, or 34% of all UK FDI financial services projects. Within the UK, the North West remained amongst the top four regions for attracting related FDIs in 2025 with Manchester outperforming everywhere outside London for the fourth time in six years.
The EY 2026 UK Attractiveness Survey scored 259 European regions based on the number of FDI projects they were able to attract in 2025.
