R&D Tax Relief for Fintech Companies

You're claiming R&D tax relief.
Would it survive scrutiny?
Most fintech companies are claiming. Fewer can explain every line under enquiry — not because they've done anything wrong, but because the process had gaps they were never shown.

Key Statistics

  • <5%: All-time HMRC enquiry rate
  • £260m+: In successful R&D claims
  • 1,300+: Companies supported since 2017
  • 5: Review stages before HMRC sees anything

The hidden problem

Compliant and defensible are not the same thing.

Most CFOs signing off an R&D claim have never seen the full technical narrative it's based on. They've approved the numbers. They've received the credits. But if HMRC asked them to walk through the technical basis — what qualified, why, and how the costs were apportioned — they'd be relying on a document they didn't write, built through a process they couldn't see.

That's not negligence. It's how traditional R&D advisory works. Information gathered through interviews, gaps filled with what the adviser knows HMRC will accept, report written and submitted. Compliant, very often. Defensible — that's a different question. And it's the one HMRC is increasingly asking.

The answer

The specialists who build it. The platform that makes it visible.

EmpowerRD combines a CTA and ATT-qualified tax team, PhD-level technical consultants who engage with your engineers at peer level, and a five-stage review process that scores every claim for clarity, strength and risk before anything reaches HMRC.

Nothing is outsourced. The people who built your claim are the people who can defend it. HMRC enquiry support is included as standard.

Your team

The platform · the intersection
EmpowerRD specialists
📊 Cost data
⚙️ Technical activities
👩‍💻 Engineer input
📁 Financial records
Live audit trail

  1. Narrative screening
  2. Technical drafting
  3. Review + scoring
  4. Cost & financial review
  5. Final submission check

Visible to you throughout — every cost, edit and decision. Real-time.

Defensible claim — returned to you
Full audit trail · every line yours · enquiry support included as standard

Proprietary data

What fintech companies at your stage actually spend

  • £513k: Median R&D expenditure per fintech claim
  • 38%: Of qualifying spend outside payroll — most miss it
  • £2.17m: Average R&D spend · Growth-stage companies

A five-question self-assessment

If any of these give you pause, it's worth a conversation.

Q: Have you seen the full technical narrative your R&D claim is based on?
If not — it exists, and you should be able to.

Q: What does your enquiry support arrangement actually cover — and is it in writing?
EmpowerRD includes this as standard, not extra.

Q: Is your claim capturing non-payroll spend — software, data licences, EPWs, contracted R&D?
38% of qualifying fintech spend sits outside payroll.

Q: If HMRC sent a letter tomorrow, who would handle it — and what would that cost you?
Should be included, not billed separately.

Client example

Penfold: 5 defensible claims in a regulated fintech environment

Penfold builds pension infrastructure for the self-employed and workplace market — technically complex, tightly regulated, where R&D eligibility is not straightforward. Five claims with EmpowerRD. None subject to HMRC enquiry.

The specialists are here. Is your claim built to match?

A 20-minute call with one of our fintech specialists will tell you whether your current claim is as strong as it should be — and where the gaps are most likely to be. We'll tell you honestly if we can add value. If we can't, we'll say so.

Book a 20-minute claim review

For fintech CFOs, Financial Controllers and founders. Free, no-obligation.