London tech companies are now taking up more office space than banks and law firms

Technology companies in London are taking up more office space in the capital than any other industry, according to research from estate agent Knight Frank that was shared with Business Insider.

In the last four years, London's technology, media and telecoms (TMT) companies have taken up 12.5 million sq ft of office space, or the equivalent of all the offices in Leeds.

Over the equivalent period, financial firms have taken just under 8.0 million sq ft, and professional firms such as lawyers and accountants have acquired 5.6 million sq ft of offices.

The main technology hub in London is still Shoreditch, where rents have increased from £40 per square foot to £65 per square foot since 2011, just shy of the rents in London's famous Square Mile where rents are £66.50 per square foot.

"Increasingly, Shoreditch is becoming a location for stage two tech firms who are acquiring the size and characteristics of mainstream companies, while the startup scene is now migrating towards districts further east, like Whitechapel," Knight Frank wrote in an email.

"This is a healthy progression for the market. If London is to generate the future Googles or Amazons it needs to allow the expanding firms to move out of the startup incubators and into modern offices. It also means other parts of London will benefit from the economic uplift an influx of startups can bring."

A different report published last week said a huge boom in the construction of new office spaces in London is being driven forward by the rapid expansion of the capital's tech sector.

Tech companies moving into new London offices

Google - Pre-purchased upwards of 800,000 sq ft at King's Cross Central in Q1 2013. Due to delays in the implementation of the scheme, Google has since acquired c.550,000 sq ft of space in the surrounding buildings at King's Cross.

Amazon- Acquired 212,000 sq ft at 60 Holborn Viaduct in Q2 2013, before pre-letting 431,000 sq ft at Principal Place, Worship Street in Q3 2014.

Facebook - Acquired 87,586 sq ft at 10 Brock Street in the Regent's Place development in Q3 2013, subsequently acquiring an additional 65,000 sq ft at 338 Euston Road in Q1 2015. In Q3 2015 it acquired 216,000 sq ft at Rathbone Square for its new HQ. The building is due for completion in Q1 2017.

Skype - Acquired 88,800 sq ft of refurbished space at 2 Waterhouse Square in Q2 2012.

King.com - Acquired 24,900 sq ft in Central St Giles in Q2 2013, which it had outgrown within a year. It then acquired 35,800 sq ft in Seven Dials Warehouse, Earlham Street in Q3 2014, before expanding again and acquiring 65,170 sq ft at 180 Wardour Street in Q3 2015.