New to Equity Pilot
Is your business an early-stage, innovation-driven Scottish company? Our new investment initiative offers up to £750,000 funding to eligible businesses looking to secure their first institutional equity investment. Find out more and apply.
To apply, get in touch with the team, and they'll send you an application pack.
Contents
Overview
The New to Equity Pilot is a £4.5 million initiative aimed at supporting ambitious, early-stage, and capital-intensive Scottish companies. It focuses on innovation-driven businesses that haven’t yet secured institutional equity investment.
This pilot was created to help close the funding gap in emerging sectors by offering early-stage risk capital on commercial terms. The aim is to increase the chances of eligible companies attracting private investment within 18 to 24 months.
We're looking to support the growth of strategically important sectors aligned with our missions, including:
- Energy transition
- Industrial biotechnology
- Critical technologies such as photonics, quantum, and semiconductors
What the fund offers
The New to Equity Pilot programme offers:
- Convertible Loan Note (CLN) investment of £250,000 to £750,000 per company, with Scottish Enterprise as the sole investor
- No requirement for private match funding at the point of investment
- Structured commercial terms, issued via our non-negotiable CLN agreement
- Access to tailored wraparound growth and investor readiness support through our International Scale-Up Service
- Opportunity to build a pathway toward raising first-round equity within 18 to 24 months
Am I eligible?
To be considered for the pilot, your company must:
- Be based in Scotland
- Be pre-seed or seed stage and post-accelerator (or equivalent)
- Be new to institutional equity - with no prior VC or professional investment (founder/family/friends excluded)
- Operate in one or more of the following sectors:
- Energy transition
- Industrial biotechnology
- Critical technologies (for example: photonics, quantum, semiconductors, AI-enabled hardware)
- Have a minimum technology readiness level (TRL) of 4
- Have a clear international export ambition
- Have a credible pathway to securing private equity investment within 18 to 24 months
- Have received prior validation (such as grants, competitions, accelerators)
Important dates
There are two stages in the selection process: an application review and a pitch to a panel of Scottish Enterprise and private investors.
Here are the key dates for each stage. Some dates are still to be confirmed (TBC) and may change.
Application requirements
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Pitch deck
This must include a roadmap, milestones, use of funds, go-to-market strategy, and financial forecasts.
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Evidence
Proof of technology readiness, intellectual property (IP) activity, and innovation.
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Details
Of capability and track record.
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Ambition
Evidence of market traction and export ambitions.
How to apply
If you'd like to apply for this pilot, get in touch with the team and they'll send you an application pack.
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