Photo: County Councillor Bob Greenland.

UK-based companies can now apply for a convertible loan of between £125,000 and £5million, to support continued growth and innovation in sectors as diverse as technology, life sciences and the creative industries.

The government has now made an initial £250million available for investment through the Future Fund scheme.

The Future Fund is targeting companies that have been unable to access other government business support programmes, because they are either pre-revenue or pre-profit.  It seeks to support innovative UK companies with good potential, that are essential in ensuring the UK retains its world leading position in science, innovation and technology. These companies typically rely on equity investment and have been affected by COVID-19.

The Future Fund is open to UK-based firms, that have previously raised at least £250,000 in equity investment from third parties in the last five years. Loans are subject to businesses securing match funding from private investors, potentially including venture capital funds, angel investors and those backed by regional funds. They will also need to have half or more of their employees based in the UK or generate at least half of their revenue through UK sales. The loans will convert to equity if not repaid.

“The Future Fund is the latest option for businesses that have been impacted by COVID-19, building upon the portfolio of funding avenues that have already been launched. It is my hope that this latest scheme will reach even more of those businesses that have fallen outside the existing offers,” said Councillor Bob Greenland, Cabinet Member for Enterprise and Land Use Planning.

Companies can check they meet the criteria for funding by going to www.uk-futurefund.co.uk/s/  

If they have secured private match funding, one of their investors can register online at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/future-fund to start the application process.

The fund will be open for applications until the end of September 2020.