Scottish Venture Fund

The Scottish Venture Fund (SVF) has been set up by Scottish Enterprise in conjunction with the Scottish Government to invest £500,000 to £2 million, along side private sector partners, in company finance deals of between £2 million and £10 million.  

Investment criteria

The SVF supports a broad range of industry sectors, typically high growth companies. The only exceptions are industry sectors where the investment leads to trade displacement or activities are restricted by regulatory issues. We will only consider investment in these sectors in exceptional circumstances where we are satisfied on both the commercial merits of the investment and the net additional economic impact.

Meeting the eligibility criteria does not guarantee investment from the SVF. We reserve the right and entitlement to reject any investment opportunity presented.

Whilst deals will normally involve venture capital funding, we will consider other types of company finance requirements. The SVF will typically invest through equity instruments but will also invest through mezzanine or debt instruments, provided that the commercial terms are on a matching basis with its partner.

How to apply

The SVF is seeking to develop the venture capital market in Scotland and has developed an innovative partnership approach in which investment partners can fall into one or both of the following categories:

  • Deal Promoting Partners (DPPs) are investors with Scottish deal flow and capital to invest. DPPs will invest in each of the deals they are promoting. However, they do not need to be based in Scotland.
  • Deal Venture Partners (DVPs)are organisations with funds to invest who are looking for a supply of quality deals.

There are no partnership fees to join the SVF as a Deal Promoting Partner or a Deal Venture Partner and the application process is very straightforward. We will consider applications from venture capital firms, business angels, corporate venturing teams and others interested in investing in Scotland.

If you are interested in joining the Scottish Venture Fund as a DPP or a DVP, simply complete the application form and send to svf@scotent.co.uk.

Microsoft Word Document Download the SVF Partner application form (Word, 251kb)

Once we have assessed your application you will be invited to sign a letter of appointment agreeing to operate in accordance with the rules of the Fund. For your information a sample of the letter of appointment including the Fund rules can be downloaded.

Microsoft Word Document Download a sample letter of appointment (Word, 85kb)

How the process works

The DPP will bring investment opportunities to the SVF. Based on commercial terms the SVF may match the investment made by the DPP, either on its own or as part of an existing syndicate, in each transaction up to a maximum of £2 million. Where additional funding is required, the SVF will then be able to utilise its partner network to distribute these opportunities to the DVPs, who have the appropriate investment preferences for a particular transaction. The DPP will then select the most appropriate partners to form the investment syndicate for that particular transaction. Typically the DPP will structure the terms and conditions of the potential deal and lead the transaction to its completion.

Enquiries

For general enquiries about the Scottish Venture Fund, please email svf@scotent.co.uk.