The British Business Bank has directly co-invested over £250 million into some of the UK’s most promising growth-stage companies. This achievement marks a growing role for the Bank as it continues to catalyse private capital and strengthen the UK’s innovation economy.
The Bank’s co-investments span 33 technology and life science companies, more than half of which originated as university spinouts. These businesses have collectively raised over £2 billion.
By focusing on sectors like advanced tech and biotech, the Bank is helping turn breakthrough research into scalable commercial success, a crucial step for the UK’s ambition to remain a global innovation hub.
Expands capacity for greater impact
To sustain this momentum, the British Business Bank has expanded its direct investing team to 13 members, reflecting its increasing role in growth capital markets. The Bank also raised the ceiling on its direct investments from £15 million to £60 million per company, enabling deeper support for high-potential businesses at critical scaling stages.
Since its establishment in 2014, the British Business Bank has played a major role in driving sustainable growth and supporting the net-zero transition. Its core programmes now have £23 billion of finance to nearly 64,000 smaller businesses across the country.
Setting the stage for the British Growth Partnership
Looking ahead, the Bank is preparing to launch the British Growth Partnership, an initiative aimed at attracting institutional capital into the UK’s fast-growing firms.
Partners including Aegon UK, NatWest Cushon, and London CIV have already shown their intent to collaborate. The partnership’s first fund will invest directly in UK growth companies, leveraging the Bank’s strong pipeline and network to draw larger pools of external capital into the ecosystem.
With its growing direct investment capacity and the upcoming British Growth Partnership, the Bank is empowering scaleups, creating jobs, and ensuring the country remains competitive on the global innovation stage.
Leandros Kalisperas, Chief Investment Officer at British Business Bank, said: “The Bank’s co-investing plays a critical role in providing scale-up capital, but we need to take this further. There are still plenty of high-potential and IP-rich companies that need funding to scale into globally significant companies, particularly in the eight priority sectors of the Government’s Modern Industrial Strategy.”
Ian Connatty, Managing Partner, British Growth Partnership, said: “The British Growth Partnership will give pension funds access to the Bank’s live pipeline of scale-up businesses. We intend to hit the ground running as soon as we are ready to launch, providing a bridge between institutional investors and the UK’s thriving venture ecosystem.”
