British Business Bank launches new £150m fund for Scottish SMBs

By Gloria Methri

The British Business Bank has launched an additional £150 million Investment Fund to help smaller businesses thrive in Scotland.

The fund will drive sustainable economic growth by supporting new and growing businesses across Scotland through investment strategies that best meet their needs. It includes a range of finance options with loans from £25,000 to £2 million and equity investments up to £5 million to help small and medium-sized businesses start up, scale up, or stay ahead.

The Investment Fund will be the first government-backed fund for smaller businesses in Scotland, helping to increase the supply and diversity of early-stage finance. Funding is designed to help businesses with activities including expansion, product or service innovation, new processes, skills development, and capital equipment.

Three fund managers have been appointed to manage the fund. DSL Business Finance will manage the smaller loans part of the fund (£25,000 to £100,000), The FSE Group will be responsible for larger loans (£100,000 to £2 million) and Maven Capital Partners will manage equity deals (up to £5 million).

Louis Taylor, Chief Executive of the British Business Bank, said, “With this fund for Scottish businesses, we hope to open the doors to new opportunities for a range of smaller firms looking to get started, grow, and develop across different sectors. Scotland is a nation of entrepreneurs and innovators and recent success stories from spinouts and early-stage businesses show that there is huge economic potential. We want to create local opportunities and generate an impact that spans beyond the fund, helping to boost productivity, innovation, and employment.”

The Investment Fund for Scotland is the second in a series of six new Nations and Regions Investment Funds being launched by the British Business Bank and follows the launch of the South West Investment Fund in July. A total of £1.6 billion has been committed to the new funds to drive sustainable economic growth and break down barriers to access to finance.

Scottish Secretary Alister Jack said, “It is great news that the British Business Bank is launching its new £150 million Investment Fund for Scotland. This funding boost will be hugely important in giving smaller Scottish businesses the investment they need to grow. Scotland has some fantastic business success stories, and this new, additional fund will help create even more of them.”