Government funded economic development agency, the British Business Bank, is to provide an extra £9m of funding for ‘high growth’ SMEs. Tony McDonough reports

Liverpool city region will benefit to the tune of £9m as it becomes one of five Innovation Clusters being established by the British Business Bank (BBB).

In a £57m investment, the Government-backed BBB will allocate cash to support “high growth” SMEs as part of the Government’s Modern Industrial Strategy. It will be delivered by NPIF II equity fund managers – PXN Ventures, Mercia Ventures and Maven Capital Partners.

Liverpool city region will get £9m, Greater Manchester £17.5m, £13.5m for West Yorkshire, £12m for the North East and £5.5m for South Yorkshire.

This targeted investment will accelerate the growth of innovation-led sectors identified in the Industrial Strategy as critical to the UK’s long-term competitiveness.

Across the North, these sectors include clean energy, advanced manufacturing, digital and technologies, life sciences, and professional and business services.

The additional funding will build on the existing work of NPIF II, which recently celebrated its second anniversary having facilitated almost £275m into over 400 businesses across the region.

One example of a high-growth business NPIF II has recently supported in the North West is Made With Intent, a Liverpool city region-based tech company who raised £2.4m in an investment round led by NPIF II – PXN Equity Finance, along with existing investors.

Having grown recurring revenue by 141% in the last financial year, the business is using the funding to grow its go-to-market team, strengthen its position in the UK’s ecommerce sector and even take its new agentic proposition to the US.

Adam Kelly, managing director of debt and regional funds at the BBB, said: “The North is home to some of the UK’s most exciting businesses, yet many have historically struggled to access the capital needed to scale.

“These new Innovation Clusters will help to bridge this gap, building on the success we’ve already achieved through NPIF II to target the high-growth industries that won’t just be important for regional growth, but also national growth.

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NPIF II offers loans from £25,000 to £2m and equity investment up to £5m to help northern businesses start up, scale up and stay ahead. 

Liverpool-based River Capital is also involved in investing in businesses across the city region with funding from NPIF II.