Edinburgh’s Smart Data Foundry in funding boost

Dougie Robb, Interim CEO at Smart Data Foundry

Edinburgh-based Smart Data Foundry (SDF) has been awarded £3 million in funding to operate a new Financial Data Service (FINDS), enabling more researchers to study the financial health of millions of households across the UK by “providing secure access to financial behaviours, economic resilience, and regional economic activity.”

The funding is made by Smart Data Research UK, which is part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).

The new service, which will operate from Smart Data Foundry’s base at the Edinburgh Futures Institute, will be part of a network of six data services across the country.

Smart Data Foundry is a wholly-owned subsidiary of The University of Edinburgh.

“Together these data services will put the UK at forefront of smart data research and innovation,” said Smart Data Foundry.

“They will provide safe and efficient ways for researchers to access and use the smart data generated through our everyday interactions with the digital world, including via mobile apps, navigation systems, social media and shopping.”

Dougie Robb, Interim CEO at Smart Data Foundry, said: “We look forward to joining five of the most forward-thinking data service organisations in the UK in this groundbreaking network.

“It will foster data sharing partnerships between academia, public institutions and private enterprise leading to public good outcomes which will improve the lives of people across the UK.”

Led by Robb and Professor Chris Dibben from the University of Edinburgh, the new Financial Data Service will provide unprecedented insights into the economic health of the UK through secure access to de-identified banking and finance data from millions of households and businesses.

“By partnering with financial institutions and leading research institutes, the new Financial Data Service will deliver insights into productivity, prosperity and health and wellbeing, providing access to detailed evidence about financial behaviours, economic resilience, and regional economic activity,” said Smart Data Foundry.

“This data will enable researchers to tackle urgent policy challenges including the cost-of-living crisis, financial inclusion, the changing nature of employment, and productivity in different economic sectors and geographic places.

“The service will enable a transformation in the UK’s understanding of how economic shocks and policy interventions affect different communities, helping policymakers design more targeted and effective responses to economic challenges.”

Robb said: “In partnership with the University of Edinburgh (UoE) we’ve made great progress in holding and making available for public benefit research financial data resources.

“We have forged fruitful data partnerships with NatWest Group, Virgin Money, SAGE, and Equifax, and built a team of transdisciplinary experts with expertise across finance, banking, digital technology, product, data science, and information governance.”

Professor Chris Dibben of the University of Edinburgh said: “Understanding the financial situation of households across the UK is a vitally important for social and economic research. However this key aspect of economic life is often poorly measured in our research datasets or even absent.

“This investment by Smart Data Research UK in a Financial Data Service will allow us to change this situation, enabling more public benefit social and economic policy research. I am really excited to be working with Smart Data Foundry and SDR UK to deliver this significant new resource over the next three years.”

Magdalena Getler, Head of Academic Engagement at Smart Data Foundry, said: “With the new Data (Use and Access) Bill currently going through Parliament, we are at the beginning of a new age for data. If successful, the new legislation will empower safe data use, access, and sharing for the good of society like tackling challenges such as the impacts of poverty and economic inactivity.”