British Business Bank commits £46M to Zinc

The British Business Bank has agreed to commit up to £46 million to Zinc Capital Management's second institutional fund, the Science-for-Impact Fund. This investment, made through the Bank's Enterprise Capital Funds programme, will help accelerate the creation and growth of innovative UK deep tech startups tackling critical health and environmental challenges.

Zinc is a specialist early-stage investor and venture builder that works with founders at the point where access to finance is often most limited. The firm's Science-for-Impact Fund is targeting a £70m fund size and aims to build a portfolio of 80 new deep tech companies.

Investment Strategy and Founder Focus

The fund's strategy aligns closely with the government's Industrial Strategy priorities across Advanced Manufacturing, Clean Energy, Life Sciences, as well as engineering, biology and AI. Zinc employs a hands-on approach, combining capital, venture-building expertise and founder support to help entrepreneurs develop high-potential ideas into investment-ready businesses. Mark Sims, Managing Director, Head of Development Equity Funds at the British Business Bank, stated, "Breakthrough businesses need support from the very earliest stages if they're to realise their potential."

This commitment follows the Bank's previous 2022 commitment to Zinc II and will enable Zinc to expand its support for founders.

Portfolio and Societal Impact

Zinc has built a portfolio of innovative UK companies addressing significant societal challenges. The firm backs entrepreneurs from the earliest stages of company creation and helps transform scientific breakthrough ideas across the UK into scalable businesses. Ella Goldner, Co-founder and Managing Partner at Zinc, said, "The UK is home to some of the world's most extraordinary scientific talent, yet too many breakthrough discoveries never become the companies that improve lives, protect our planet and create long-term economic value. We founded Zinc to change that by partnering with exceptional scientists and entrepreneurs across the UK at the earliest stages."

The portfolio includes SignaCor (first in class therapeutics for heart disease), Epiome (an AI-powered biomarker platform for neurodegenerative diseases), Speek (a digital clinical care platform for teenage self-harm), Spine (an AI operating system for grid-scale battery asset management), and CellMine (a waste-free process to recycle lithium-ion batteries).

Programme Objectives and Market Development

The British Business Bank's Enterprise Capital Funds programme aims to increase the supply of equity capital to early-stage UK companies with long-term growth potential and lower barriers to entry for fund managers looking to operate in the VC market. This includes providing a return structure that makes it more attractive to private sector investors.

Zinc's model focuses on transforming world-class research into ventures that deliver lasting impact in health and the environment while building the globally significant businesses of the future.