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New £210m investment fund launches to unlock growth the South East of England

Press release 09 September 2026

  • £210m South East Investment Fund launched to support small and medium sized businesses
  • The Fund will offer a range of commercial finance options with loans from £25,000 to £2m and equity investments of up to £5m
  • Launch of the South East Investment Fund and forthcoming East of England Investment Fund means the British Business Bank is now delivering targeted finance across every UK Nation and region outside of London.

A new £210m Fund designed to support the growth of small and medium sized businesses in the South East of England, has been launched today by the British Business Bank.

Launch of the South East Investment Fund and forthcoming East of England Investment Fund later this month means the British Business Bank is now delivering targeted finance across every UK Nation and region outside of London.

This supports the Government’s plan for growth in every postcode by helping businesses access finance close to home. By backing ambitious smaller businesses, the fund aims to support innovation, create jobs and stimulate sustained economic growth in the region.

Covering Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, Sussex, Surrey and Kent, the South East Investment Fund will provide much-needed access to finance for small and medium-sized businesses, offering loans from £25,000 to £2 million and equity investments of up to £5 million to help businesses start, scale and grow.

The Fund has already made its first investment with a £250,000 loan to Basingstoke technology company Process Vision, demonstrating early impact in the region. The funding is backing the company’s next phase of commercial growth and international expansion.

The South East of England is home to 17% of the UK’s university spinout businesses, behind only London 1 , while the region received 5% of the UK’s total equity investment by value last year 2 . The launch of the fund will help to ensure the bridge between academic innovation and market deployment is adequately supported in the region.

David Hourican,  Incoming Interim Chief Executive Officer of the British Business Bank, said:

Today’s launch of The South East England Investment Fund will help to stimulate economic growth throughout the region. The South East of England is home to some of the UK’s most innovative technological and scientific businesses and this fund will ensure that business have local access to the finance they need to grow, scale and expand.

Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said:

Small businesses are the bedrock of our economy and a vital part of any high street, whether it’s a tech startup in Surrey or a creative agency in Margate. Making sure that smaller businesses have the backing they need to thrive is a crucial part of creating good growth in every postcode.

We are determined not to let access to investment be a barrier to success for businesses in the South East. The launch of this fund will help to ensure that small businesses across the region can grow to match their ambitions, whether that is bringing in new staff, moving into a new base or scaling into an international company.

The South East Investment Fund will be managed by a team of fund managers appointed by the British Business Bank including The FSE Group and Maven Capital Partners. The FSE Group will manage the debt finance part of the fund while Maven Capital Partners will manage equity investment through the fund.

Further Information

If you are a journalist and have a media enquiry, please contact [email protected].

Notes to editors

Following today’s official launch in Brighton, the British Business Bank will be holding a roadshow for small business finance intermediaries across the region to provide more information about the fund. Destinations include Green Park Conference Centre, Reading (06 October), University of Southampton Science Park, Southampton (07 October), and Turner Contemporary, Margate (08 October).

Nations and Regions Investments Limited, registered in England and Wales, registration number 14777628, registered office Steel City House, West Street, Sheffield S1 2GQ. A wholly owned commercial subsidiary of British Business Bank plc, registered in England and Wales, registration number 08616013, registered office Steel City House, West Street, Sheffield, S1 2GQ. British Business Bank plc is a development bank wholly owned by HM Government. It 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.

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. Its remit is to design, deliver and efficiently manage UK-wide smaller business access to finance programmes for the UK government.

In 2025/26 3 , the Bank supported UK smaller businesses to access £9.4bn of finance, made up of £1.3bn of public funding, £4.3bn of private capital crowded in by the Bank and £3.7bn of lending the Bank guaranteed. The funding benefited 38,000 UK businesses, including around 30,000 businesses the Bank had not previously helped to fund.

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. 

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