A new London office for Lebanese tech entrepreneurs, enabling them to use the UK as a springboard for global growth, has opened in the heart of Tech City in Shoreditch.

The London office is the first overseas base of the new UK Lebanon Tech Hub, which aims to support the growth of the knowledge economy in Lebanon.

It will allow the most promising Lebanese companies to base themselves at home but visit London to tap into UK expertise and mentoring, develop partnerships, and use it as a platform to break into new markets.

The UK Lebanon Tech Hub, launched on 30 April, is a joint initiative by Banque du Liban, Lebanon's Central Bank, and the UK government through the British Embassy in Beirut.

In the past, Lebanese business success has usually been achieved overseas: 90 % of Lebanese live abroad and the diaspora is estimated to be around 14 million.

But in the last few years the ICT sector in Lebanon has witnessed significant growth: a new generation are looking to take forward opportunities within their own country, rather than move abroad to start up.