Startup Funding Club secures £10m from British Business Bank subsidiary

A subsidiary of the British Business Bank has committed to providing multi-million pound funding to Startup Funding Club (SFC).

The firm will be able to access £10m from British Business Investments to roll out to startups across the country.

Established in 2012 by former software entrepreneur Stephen Page, SFC aims to support high-potential startups as well as making angel investing more accessible.

Managed by SFC, the funds will be invested alongside the SFC SEIS & EIS Funds as well as the SFC Angel Network, with SFC planning to deploy the commitment in over 100 early stage businesses across the UK.

Catherine Lewis La Torre, CEO at British Business Investments, commented: “Our Regional Angels Programme is designed to address imbalances in access to angel finance in the UK and to increase the overall amount of capital available to smaller businesses, through angel networks.

“This £10m commitment from British Business Investments will allow Startup Funding Club to build on its impressive track record of supporting high growth-potential businesses across the UK, particularly at a time when the business experience and financial support delivered by angel investors is needed more than ever.”

Joseph Zipfel, chief investment officer of SFC, added: “In these uncertain times, supporting angel investors and early-stage funds is essential to preserve the UK’s world-class entrepreneurial ecosystem and we thank BBI for their commitment.

“In March 2020 alone, SFC has invested over £5m in 28 companies and this £10m commitment will act as a catalyst to our ability to help high-potential companies across all sectors and regions of the UK.

“We believe that angel investing is currently an attractive asset class as long as you focus on the right sectors and take a long-term and cautious approach. Startups are lean and agile and can adapt quickly to tough conditions and sometimes even benefit from them.

“We want to make it clear that the SFC is open for business and we look forward to working with entrepreneurs and investors across the country.”

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