BBB makes cornerstone investment in fintech startup fund
The British Business Bank (BBB) has made an £18m cornerstone investment to Form Ventures’ Fund II, which will help finance new and growing UK businesses in sectors which are directly shaped by policy and regulation, such as fintech.
The investment was made as part of a £30m funding round which closed today.
Form Ventures will use the funding to invest in startups at pre-seed and seed stage.
The money will be made available via the company’s Enterprise Capital Funds programme, which aims to increase the supply of equity capital to high-potential, early stage UK companies.
Read more: Autumn Budget: Calls to scrap limits on number of ISAs
“Technology is now disrupting every corner of our lives, from our mental health to our childcare to the future of our planet,” said Patrick Newton, partner at Form Ventures.
“More than ever, policymakers want to have their say on how disruption happens – gone are the days when startups could just ‘move fast and break things’. Smart founders realise that if they take policymakers seriously, they can build faster, not slower, and gain a real competitive edge.”
Read more: Funding Circle finds SMEs are planning for post-Covid growth
Form Ventures’ Fund II will invest between £200,000 and £1m in startups across sectors including fintech, childcare, mental health, carbon offsetting, cellular agriculture and more.
The funding round has also been backed by institutional investors such as Isomer Capital, Draper Esprit, and Blue Wire Capital.
Read more: Banking Competition Remedies Fund unveils latest grants