British Business Investments (BBI), a subsidiary of the British Business Bank, has extended its commitment to SFC Capital to £25m with the goal of backing an additional 100 regional startups.
BBI said on Wednesday that it was committing an additional £10m to the investor through its Regional Angels Programme, designed to reduce regional imbalances in access to early-stage equity funding in the UK.
The capital injection follows BBI’s £15m of previous funding commitments made in 2020 that have been deployed across over 150 companies.
“This was made possible by the strong performance of the companies that we have invested in so far under the programme, a testament to the strength of entrepreneurial talent that we have in the UK,” said Joseph Zipfel, chief investment officer at SFC Capital.
“The Regional Angels Programme is a formidable case study of how the private and public sector can collaborate to boost the startup ecosystem nationally while providing a positive return to taxpayers.”
Since 2012, SFC Capital has invested in over 500 startups in Britain, including digital ID company Onfido and sales software group Cognism.
Recent investments include Nottingham-based biotech 4D Biomaterials, Canterbury-based HR software company Neurosight and University of Manchester spinout Careloop.
“Our Regional Angels Programme is designed to address imbalances in access to early-stage finance in the UK, and to increase the overall amount of capital available to smaller businesses through angel networks,” said Adam Kelly, managing director of British Business Investments.
“Following our earlier commitments in 2020, this further commitment of £10m will allow SFC Capital to build on its track record of supporting high growth-potential businesses across the UK.”
Last week, BBI extended its funding commitment to early-stage startup investor Haatch by £10m.
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