Family businesses are integral to the UK economy, making a significant contribution to turnover, employment, and growth across all regions, nations, and sectors. They offer distinct advantages over other ownership structures; for example, family firms often exhibit greater resilience during economic downturns due to their long-term focus, contributing to economic stability and continuity (Clinton et al., 2018). During the COVID-19 pandemic, family SMEs were less likely to reduce their workforce compared to non-family SMEs (Kemp, 2022). Their commitment to long-term goals and values often translates into sustained investment in employees and communities, even during challenging times (Oxford Economics, 2022). 

According to new research by Cebr (2025) commissioned by the Family Business Research Foundation, family businesses generated £2,805bn in turnover, or almost half (49.5 per cent) of private sector turnover in 2023. In that year, for every £100 of turnover generated by family businesses, Cebr estimate that £17.50 was paid in taxes. Overall, Cebr estimate that family firms contributed a total of £422bn in taxation.  Of this, £142bn was generated through taxes borne, and £280 billion was through taxes collected. 

Family businesses play a vital role in the UK finance sector. While they are less prevalent compared with other sectors such as construction, wholesale and retail, Cebr estimate that there were 49,017 family-businesses with employees operating in the financial, insurance and real-estate sector in 2023. This represents around two-thirds (64.6 per cent) of all private businesses with employees operating in this part of the economy. 

Figure 1 shows how the proportion of businesses that were family firms in the financial, insurance and real estate sector varied by firm size. It shows that the prevalence of family-ownership falls as firm size increases, with Cebr estimating that almost one in ten of large firms (250+ employees) were family-owned compared with 68.3 per cent of micro-sized employers in this sector. 

Figure 1: Percentage of private businesses with employees in the financial, insurance and real estate activities sector that were family-owned in 2023, by firm size 

Source: Cebr, 2025, Table 3, p.10 

While family firms are less prevalent in finance compared with some other sectors, they nonetheless employed 652,000 people in the finance industry in 2023, pointing to their wider social impact. Cebr estimate that this accounted for 54.6 per cent of private sector employment in the industry in 2023. Furthermore, family-owned businesses in this industry contributed substantially to employee compensation in that year, paying an estimated total of £20,579m in wages and benefits, with an average salary of £38,075 per annum. 

According to estimates from Cebr, family-owned firms contributed an estimated £142,810m to the financial, insurance and real-estate sector’s turnover in 2023, equating to one third (32.6 per cent) of private-sector turnover in this part of the economy. In addition, Cebr estimate that family businesses in the finance sector generated gross value added (GVA) of £82,880m, accounting for three quarters (75.9 per cent) of total private sector GVA. 

While family-owned finance firms constitute a smaller share compared to other industries, their economic impact in the UK is clearly substantial. However, there is a paucity of research and data on the role of business-owning families play in providing financial services in the UK. Further research is needed to better understand how family ownership influences governance, risk management, and strategic decision-making in financial services. The latest sector report from the Family Business Research Foundation lays the groundwork for further work to investigate the social and economic impact of family-owned firms in UK finance.