A new report  by the British Private Equity and Venture Capital Association shows Liverpool city region is a ‘hot spot’ for private equity investment. Tony McDonough reports

Liverpool city region is a ‘hot spot’ for private equity and venture capital investment, a new report claims.

According to the study by the British Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (BVCA) Liverpool firms have benefited from £2.6bn of private investment into North West businesses in the last three years.

This total regional investment into 220 businesses has supported almost 80,000 jobs, the report says. It takes a closer look at investment in the North West of England and is the first in a series of publications that look at the benefits of private equity and venture capital.

Over the past few years the median investment size is between £1m and £2m and 86% of the recipients are small to medium-sized enterprises.

The benefits, both social and economic, are illustrated by the latest industry data – including how many businesses and sectors are supported, the number of jobs they create and the total investment value. It highlights three Liverpool city region businesses that have secured private equity and venture capital in the past few years. They are:

• WEALTH at Work – A specialist provider of financial education and guidance in the workplace – including through interactive financial wellbeing websites, workplace seminars and a dedicated wealth management service – supported by regulated financial advice for individuals.
• Liverpool ChiroChem – A chemistry-based research organisation that supports the discovery and development of drug intermediates in the chiral molecule space that are used to make high-quality drugs. Last week the company secured a new £2m investment.
• ChargePoint Technology – A manufacturer, delivering sterile containment products – including specialised bags, bottles, valves and extraction systems – to companies across Europe, Asia and North America. In March it was announced the firm had secured a multi-million pound investment from the US.

The companies featured operate at all stages of growth and across a broad range of sectors. Some are fledgling in size but with potential and others are global exporters of goods. All have benefitted from the business expertise and guidance that comes with private equity and venture capital backing.

The report goes on to identify the attractiveness of the North West as a region for private investment, the role it can, and will, play in the UK’s growth-led economic recovery, and the alignment of firms investing in the region with public policy priority.

Michael Moore, director general of the BVCA, said: “The North West is home to some of the most exciting opportunities in the country for investors and the region is now host to the UK’s most significant private equity and venture capital hub outside of London and the South East.

“At a time of unprecedented challenges, private equity and venture capital investments have supported North West businesses in their recovery and enabled them to provide benefits across their region, compete on a global platform, and to work towards Net Zero.

“This is the public value which private equity and venture capital investment is proud to bring across the nations and regions of the UK.”