The Future Fund: Breakthrough scheme is open for applications and is available to innovative businesses operating in breakthrough technology sectors.

The programme will deliver £375m of government funding via British Patient Capital, a commercial subsidiary of the British Business Bank.

This scheme is separate to the, now closed, Future Fund.

Scheme information

Breakthrough technology companies usually require more capital than other technology companies to fuel the later stages of their growth. This scheme encourages private sector investors to co-invest in innovative, high growth firms alongside British Patient Capital.

This is an investor-led programme, and applications can only be made by a qualifying lead investor and cannot be made by companies themselves.

Lead investor criteria can be found here.

Company eligibility criteria

In order to be eligible for the scheme, companies must

– Be UK based with significant UK operations;
– Have raised at least £5m of equity investment from third-party investors in previous funding rounds in the last five years;
– Be raising a minimum investment round size of £30m; and
– The company must be carrying out R&D activity in the UK by meeting all three of the following criteria:

  • R&D spending (as defined by pre-set accounting rules) will have been at least 10% of total operational cost, based on an average over the last 3 years, or at least 15% in one of the past 3 years;
  • Company is developing defensible intellectual property in the UK which they expect to be the company’s main revenue source;
  • Company intends that 20% or more of employees will be carrying out research for at least 3 years from the date of investment, in roles that require a relevant master’s degree or higher.

How to apply

The investor must complete an online application to provide an initial assessment of their eligibility to act as a lead investor.

Following the initial application, the lead investor will be required to share an investment paper with British Patient Capital outlining the rationale for making the investment. This should detail the business plan and any follow-on funding expectations.

The Future Fund: Breakthrough online application can be found here.