British Business Bank has agreed to make £100m cornerstone commitment to Apposite Healthcare Growth I, the Bank’s largest fund commitment to date
Press release
The British Business Bank has agreed to make a £100 million commitment to Apposite Healthcare Growth I, a fund investing to support the growth of health technology companies, primarily in the UK. This will be the British Business Bank’s largest fund commitment to date and is the Bank’s first commitment to Apposite Capital.
Apposite Capital is a specialist healthcare and life sciences investor. Apposite Healthcare Growth I will invest in innovative companies across medical products, diagnostics, life sciences tools, digital health, and pharmaceutical outsourcing services.
The fund aims to address the shortage of scale-up capital for UK life sciences companies approaching a growth inflection, which aligns with the Bank’s strategy to create deeper pools of scale up funding. The fund will invest in UK companies developing market leading technologies and services to improve patient outcomes and access to healthcare, while enabling them to compete globally and create highly skilled jobs.
The British Business Bank is the largest investor in UK venture and venture growth capital funds and regularly makes cornerstone commitments to funds that are aligned with its strategy. By acting as a cornerstone investor, the Bank enables a fund to achieve a first, supporting their launch and enabling them to execute their strategy at greater scale.
The British Business Bank intends to deliver a step change in its support for UK scale ups and is targeting over 60% of our venture and growth investment flow towards scale-ups. As part of this strategy, the Bank aims to support the launch of 10 new to market growth-stage funds over the next five years and will write larger cheques into leading fund managers.
Christine Hockley, Managing Director and Co-Head of Funds, British Business Bank, said:
The UK needs growth stage funding, and the Bank is stepping up to deliver this. Working with the UK’s venture capital community, we are looking to support the creation of growth stage funds capable of writing significant cheques into the next generation of UK unicorns. To help these funds launch and ensure they have the size and firepower needed, we are writing larger cheques and signalling these commitments to institutional investors, with the intention it mobilises the private sector.
Mark Andrews, Investment Director, Funds, Life Sciences, British Business Bank, said:
The need for scale up funding is especially pronounced in life sciences. However, there remains a shortage of later-stage funds, meaning that many promising life sciences companies cannot fulfil their potential in the UK and may embark on premature or sub-optimal exits. Apposite’s new fund has a clear focus on growth stage investing in life sciences and will help convert world-leading UK science into global companies.
Sam Gray, Managing Partner at Apposite Capital, said:
The commitment from the British Business Bank will enable Apposite to continue its strong track record of supporting ambitious growing companies and investing in businesses that can achieve better healthcare for more people. Apposite Healthcare Growth I will back the next generation of UK healthcare technology leaders. The UK is home to an extraordinary depth of scientific research, entrepreneurial talent, and innovative companies, yet many businesses face a persistent gap in scale-up funding. This fund will bridge that gap, enabling high potential companies to accelerate their growth, commercialise transformative technologies, improve health outcomes and support economic growth.
Peter Kyle, Secretary of State for Business and Trade, said:
We’ve committed to backing our most ambitious companies, ensuring the UK leads in innovation and competes globally.
This record investment into Apposite Capital delivers on that promise by giving it the financial firepower to support the UK’s most exciting healthcare tech firms scale, develop cutting edge medical products and diagnostics, and improve healthcare right across the country.
Further Information
If you are a journalist and have a media enquiry, please contact [email protected].
Notes to editors
About the British Business Bank
The British Business Bank is the UK government’s economic development bank. Established in November 2014, its mission is to drive economic growth by helping smaller businesses get the finance they need to start, scale and stay in the UK. In doing so, we help capture the economic value of innovation for the UK and create jobs and prosperity for people across the country.
The British Business Bank’s core programmes support £23bnRead footnote text 1 of finance to almost 64,000Read footnote text 2 smaller businesses.
British Business Bank plc is a public limited company registered in England and Wales, registration number 08616013, registered office at Steel City House, West Street, Sheffield, S1 2GQ. It is a development bank wholly owned by HM Government. British Business Bank plc and its subsidiaries are not banking institutions and do not operate as such. With the exception of BBB Investment Services Limited they are not authorised or regulated by the Prudential Regulation Authority or the Financial Conduct Authority. BBB Investment Services Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. A complete legal structure chart for the group can be found at british-business-bank.co.uk.
British Patient Capital Limited is registered in England and Wales with company number 11271076, and registered office at Steel City House, West Street, Sheffield, S1 2GQ. British Patient Capital makes commitments and invests on its own behalf and on behalf of third-party investors whose investments British Patient Capital manages.
The transaction described above does not constitute or imply any endorsement, warranty or recommendation by the UK government, the British Business Bank plc, its subsidiaries or any other party in respect of Apposite Capital or its products or services.
About Apposite Capital
Apposite Capital is a leading UK based independent fund manager focused exclusively on healthcare and life sciences. Founded in 2006, Apposite has a 20-year track record of supporting European healthcare and life sciences companies to grow, providing both capital and expertise to businesses with disruptive models that aim to improve or reduce the cost of care provision and which have the potential to become market leaders.
-
Return to footnote location
1
Figures as at end March 2025
-
Return to footnote location
2
Figures as at end March 2025, does not include Start Up Loans
Quick links
Latest news
-
Read more about British Business Bank commits £100m to Oxford Quantum Circuits Press release
03 June 2026 -
Read more about The British Business Bank’s Growth Guarantee Scheme unlocks £200m for smaller businesses across Scotland, revealing the nation’s regions, cities and sectors investing most in their own growth Press release
02 June 2026 -
Read more about British Business Bank invests £5m in IMU Biosciences Press release
02 June 2026