Scaleup programmes
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British Business Bank: Enterprise Capital Fund
Finance and Risk Capital
Impact for scaleups
675+
Companies backed
53%
Investment outside of London
£2.5bn
Total investment capacity of the programme
Key sectors
The British Business Bank is the largest domestic backer of venture capital funds in the UK. Established in 2006, the Enterprise Capital Funds (ECF) programme helps those looking to operate in the UK market to raise venture capital funds specifically targeting early-stage small businesses with long-term growth potential.
The programme’s primary objective is to address the ‘equity gap’ by increasing the availability of early-stage equity finance to high-potential UK companies and to lower the barriers to entry for fund managers entering the venture capital market. It does this by combining private and public money to make equity investments in high-growth businesses. It is working with 35 fund partners across the UK to achieve this.
To date, 50 ECFs have been in operation, providing over £784 million of equity finance and supporting more than 675 innovative growing businesses across a range of sectors. The top five sectors supported by ECFs are SaaS, AI, industrials, TMT (technology, media and telecommunications), and healthcare. More than 53% of investments are outside of London, contributing to regional economic growth. The British Business Bank invests alongside VC funds on terms that improve outcomes for private investors when those funds are successful. The ECF programme has helped 31 fund managers raise their first institutional fund, and 89% of fund managers backed before 2016 have gone on to raise a subsequent fund.
The average size of an ECF has increased from around £20 million to closer to £60 million over the lifetime of the programme. Since inception, the capital committed by the British Business Bank and matched private sector capital has amounted to over £2.5 billion. The Bank’s rolling investment programme of commitments to new ECFs is a competitive process, with typically two to three investments made per year. Recent ECFs include Imbiba Growth II LP – a B Corp-accredited investor focused on leisure and lifestyle businesses – and Mercuri (formerly GMG Ventures), which backs companies at the intersection of media and technology.
Current fund managers include: Active Partners, Ada Ventures, Amadeus Capital Partners, Bethnal Green Ventures, Catapult Ventures, Concept Ventures, Dawn Capital, Edge Investments, Eka Ventures, Entrepreneur First, Epidarex Capital, Episode 1 Ventures, Form Ventures, Foresight Group, Imbiba, IQ Capital, JamJar Investments, Longwall Ventures, Mercuri (formerly GMG Ventures), Notion Capital, Osney Capital, Outward VC, Panoramic Growth Equity, Passion Capital, Pentech Ventures, Redrice Ventures, Seraphim Capital, SuperSeed Ventures, Sure Valley Ventures, Sussex Place Ventures, VGC Partners, and Zinc VC.
