Inbound investment spotlight: the United States

From technology and life sciences to financial services and advanced manufacturing, US businesses are increasingly choosing the UK not just as a destination market, but as a platform for innovation, talent, intellectual property creation and international growth and expansion.

The evolution of the UK-US business relationship over the past 12 months

The US is the UK’s largest export market and source of foreign direct investment. Regardless of politics, the relationship with the US remains of paramount importance. President Trump is the first US President to be offered two British state visits, reinforcing the importance of this partnership on both sides of the Atlantic. 

The UK-US governments have maintained a strong relationship over the past year notwithstanding trade policy and world conflicts dominating headlines. 

The Economic Prosperity Deal (EPD) agreed between the UK and US in May 2025 was an important milestone. While not a traditional free trade agreement, it demonstrated a shared commitment to create a framework to stabilise and deepen the transatlantic economic relationship. It was the first bilateral agreement of its kind concluded by the Trump administration since the Liberation Day tariffs introduced in April 2025. It also signalled a positive shift from earlier trade talks in October 2018, which stalled during the Biden administration. 

The EPD provided greater certainty for key sectors. Examples of success stories include pharmaceutical and medical technologies, with the UK securing tariff-free access for pharmaceutical exports to the US and enhanced regulatory cooperation between the MHRA and FDA. Aerospace tariffs have been removed, and reciprocal beef market access arrangements have been implemented, providing greater certainty for exporters. Automotive manufacturers have also benefited from reduced US tariffs through a dedicated quota arrangement, which was a particular pain point following the Liberation Day Tariffs in April 2025. 

However, there are aspects of the EPD where stated commitments have either made no or little progress. A notable example of the lack of agreed tariffs/quotas is in relation to steel and aluminium exports, where the sector’s strategic importance to economic security, defence-related supply chains and net-zero infrastructure is well recognised.

The Technology Prosperity Deal (TPD) was signed between the US and UK during President Trump’s State Visit to the UK in September 2025. This provided a framework agreement building on the EPD, setting out a programme of cooperation across AI, quantum and advanced nuclear technologies, energy, telecoms and related critical technologies with specific government agencies identified as partners. During the 2025 State Visit, US businesses announced investment commitments worth approximately £150 billion across technology, life sciences, advanced manufacturing, infrastructure and defence. This included significant committed investments from Microsoft (£22 billion over 4 years), Google (£5 billion over 2 years) in addition to previously announced commitments such as Amazon (£8billion) and Blackstone (£10billion).  

Technology provides perhaps the clearest illustration of where the relationship is heading. Initiatives involving OpenAI and NVIDIA, including projects linked to Stargate UK and plans to develop the Northeast as an AI Growth Zone, demonstrate the extent to which the UK is being viewed as a centre for future innovation rather than simply a destination market. Investors are attracted not only by access to customers, but by world-class research institutions, specialist talent and the opportunity to create valuable intellectual property. 

Elsewhere, major US financial institutions including PayPal, Bank of America, Citi, S&P Global and BlackRock continue to expand their UK presence, reflecting confidence in both London's status as a global financial centre and the growing importance of regional centres such as Manchester, Edinburgh and Belfast. 

The value of US investment in the UK

The most compelling US investment success stories are not businesses that have simply entered the UK market. They are businesses that have used the UK as a platform for innovation, growth and international expansion.

Technology provides perhaps the strongest example. Major American technology companies continue to invest heavily in UK AI infrastructure, cloud computing, research capability and digital innovation. Projects involving OpenAI and NVIDIA demonstrate both the scale of ambition and the strength of the UK's technology ecosystem. Investors are drawn not only to the UK market itself but to its universities, research institutions and highly skilled technology workforce. 

Life sciences tells a similar story. The combination of leading universities, specialist research clusters and the NHS creates a uniquely attractive environment for businesses focused on pharmaceutical development, biotechnology and healthcare innovation. Many US companies view the UK not merely as a place to sell products, but as a location in which to develop intellectual property, conduct research and commercialise innovation. 

Financial services remain another cornerstone of the relationship. Recent investments announced by PayPal, Bank of America, Citi, S&P Global and BlackRock demonstrate the continued confidence of major US institutions in the UK market. Importantly, these investments are increasingly spread across the country, supporting employment and growth not only in London but also Manchester, Edinburgh and Belfast. 

Advanced manufacturing and defence also demonstrate growth and investment. Boeing's investment in Birmingham and Amentum's activities across Glasgow, Warrington and the Midlands highlight continued confidence in Britain's engineering expertise, defence-industrial partnerships and advanced manufacturing capability. 

Infrastructure investment is also playing a significant role. Prologis' investment programme supporting Cambridge Biomedical Campus and Daventry International Rail Freight Terminal demonstrates how growth in sectors such as life sciences and advanced technology generates demand for logistics, transport and specialist infrastructure. 

What is interesting and also encouraging is that the benefits of inward investment are increasingly being distributed across regional clusters. US investors are making decisions based on access to talent, research capability and specialist expertise rather than simply proximity to London.

The UK and US: natural business partners?

The US and UK are often described as natural business partners because they combine deep economic integration, compatible legal systems, shared language and culture, a long history of investment and innovation collaboration, and a close security and intelligence partnership.

One of the biggest advantages is the relative ease of doing business across both borders. Both countries operate under common law traditions, have sophisticated financial markets, strong intellectual property protections, transparent regulation and similar approaches to corporate governance. UK and US businesses generally share similar approaches to innovation, entrepreneurship, investment and growth. That makes it easier to build relationships, execute transactions and scale businesses than in many other international markets.

The UK and US are each among the other's largest sources of foreign direct investment (FDI). Rather than simply trading goods and services, businesses from both countries have substantial operations, employees and supply chains on either side of the Atlantic. 

Both countries have complimentary capabilities that lead to a reciprocal and successful relationship, for example, the US offers scale, capital, large technology companies and deep venture capital markets with the UK offering world-leading universities, scientific research, a highly skilled workforce, and a favourable location as a gateway to European markets. Both countries are also global leaders in research and technology, with the US home to many of the world's largest technology companies.

The most successful investors adopt an integrated approach

The costliest mistakes in international expansion are rarely caused by a poor business idea. More often, they arise because key legal, regulatory and commercial issues were identified too late.

One of the most common misconceptions among businesses entering a new market is that legal advice should follow the commercial decision-making process. In reality, the most successful expansion projects involve advisers from the outset, helping shape strategy rather than simply documenting it.

The first critical issue is corporate structure and tax considerations. Decisions around whether to establish a subsidiary, acquire an existing business, enter a joint venture or appoint a distributor can have significant implications for tax, governance, liability and operational flexibility. Choices made at the start of a project often determine how easily a business can scale in the future. 

Brand clearance and protection is an area that is frequently underestimated, particularly for scale-ups and mid-sized business. Owing to the ease of company incorporation in the UK, all too frequently a company is incorporated in the UK with the same name it has in the US without carrying preliminary clearance searches, only to be challenged and/or change its name.

Employment law varies very significantly from the US law. There is no ‘employment at will,’ from 1 January 2027 employees with six months’ continuous service will be protected from being unfairly dismissed (excluding protected dismissal-related claims including discrimination or whistleblowing) which can be brought whenever employment ends) and statutory cap on compensation will be removed. UK full-time employees are entitled to 28 days paid leave, paid maternity, paternity and adoption leave, pension contributions and more.  

The most successful investors therefore adopt an integrated approach. They build the right advisory team early, bringing together corporate, tax, employment and pensions, immigration IP, commercial, regulatory, data and privacy and other specialists depending on the requirements of business around a shared commercial objective. This integrated approach also involves other professional advisors such as accountants and trade experts. 

Effective transatlantic advice is not simply about explaining UK law. It is about understanding where UK and US approaches differ, identifying risks before they become problems and helping businesses make informed commercial decisions.

For companies making a significant international investment, that early advice is not a cost. It is often one of the most valuable investments they will make.