The Cardiff Capital Region Board was established in November 2013, by the Welsh Government Minister for Economy, Science and Transport.

Secretary of State for Wales Stephen Crabb urged local councils to support the proposal, calling the opportunity a "once in a generation".

Supporters of the city deal hope that the shorter timeframe encourages funding to be delivered to the region faster.

[11] It was ratified on 1 March 2017,[12] and every five years the deal undergoes a gateway review where the local authorities can decide to opt-out if they desire to.

[13] Carwyn Jones said following ratification "I’m delighted that the landmark £1.2bn Cardiff Capital Region City Deal has been formally ratified.".

[15][16] The deal aims to create up to 25,000 new jobs (including 10,000 new apprenticeships) in the region, and an additional £4 billion in private sector investment.

The fund is centred on job creation and business expansion in the region, in addition to attracting inward investment.

[24] In April 2021, a Cardiff University lead partnership initiative, Clwstwr, assessed the economic impact of the media sector in the region.

[26] 1,318 firms were stated by the report to be present in the region, with BBC Cymru Wales taking a big share (47%) of the economic contributions from the sector.