The founder of one of Silicon Valley’s fastest-growing companies today hailed London as “by far and away the best location” for a tech firm to set up an international base outside America.
Box chief executive Aaron Levie, who was speaking as Prince Andrew opened the company’s new offices in Mayfair this morning, said his online storage firm conducted a “very exhaustive search” across Europe, including low-tax Dublin, before choosing London as its main non-US hub.
“We looked at our customer mix, the talent we wanted to bring in and the eco-system,” said Levie, who believes the number of tech developers and start-ups has reached “a critical mass” in the capital.
“London is unquestionably a hub for consulting, for finance, for media and for marketing. We need to go where the customers are.”
Box, which is valued at $1.2 billion (£xxx million), provides cloud-storage services for 180,000 customers from consumer goods giant Procter & Gamble to Heathrow Airport. Instead of having to store documents and data themselves, companies outsource storage to Box, which has software that allows information to be shared easily by multiple users.
Levie, 28, who co-founded Box in 2005, plans to employ 100 people in London by next year. He was wooed by trade body London & Partners and Mayor Boris Johnson who said Box’s new office was “further evidence of London’s status as a leading tech capital”.
Box increased revenues 150% last year, with turnover now approaching $100 million.
