The EU lags behind both the US and China in its number of high growth entrepreneurial firms (HGFs). These firms play a critical role in economic development as sources of innovation, investment and employment.

Female founders raise only 15 per cent of all equity funding, which is a shortfall of £1.6bn per year, according to a report published by the Female Founders Forum, a partnership by think tank The Entrepreneurs Network and Barclays. In Inspiring Innovation, the think tank calls on the Government to close the gender funding gap and provide more opportunities for women to be inspired into entrepreneurship.

The British Business Bank has announced that the Recovery Loan Scheme has passed a significant milestone, with 76 accredited lenders having offered over £1bn to smaller UK businesses as they steer a path towards a sustainable recovery.

The Embark Investor Confidence Barometer has revealed that the majority of investors believe that it is their responsibility to invest in a way that doesn't contribute to climate change.

eFront's latest Quarterly Private Equity Performance Overview, covering the period to the end of Q1 2021, shows that following the massive pandemic shock-driven correction in the first quarter of 2020, the following 12 months (Q2 2020 – Q1 2021) brought a persistent recovery and further growth to the global Buyout and VC markets. In the first quarter of this year, VC funds have globally generated a quarterly return of 12.9%, while the Buyout funds produced 9.6% over the same period.

The eighth edition of the Global Green Finance Index (GGFI) evaluates the green finance offering of 80 financial centres. .

The British Business Bank reveals today that, based on its estimates, smaller businesses[1] account for almost a third (30%) of all current UK greenhouse gas emissions (including emissions from households, industry and government) and around half (50%) of total emissions from UK businesses.[2]

Its latest research report, Smaller businesses and the transition to net zero, highlights the potential collective influence of UK smaller businesses and the considerable contribution they could make to wider net zero objectives if they all made changes to reduce their carbon footprint. The report, one of the most in-depth so far in this under-explored part of the market, incorporates results from fresh data via a bespoke, nationally representative survey of 1,200 smaller businesses, and analysis of public data sources.

The world’s most entrepreneur-friendly cities have been revealed in a new report by the personal finance experts at money.co.uk.

More than four in ten businesses in the UK were using external finance in 2021 but a lack of local investors means economic potential continues to be wasted 

The Association of Investment Companies (AIC) has released the report, 'Eager beavers: Enhancing the UK's commercial ecosystem'. The report examines VCT investment since the 2017 rule changes which directed VCTs towards higher-risk investment.

Tech Nation, the UK’s leading growth platform for tech scaleups, today announces the 30 companies who have been accepted into Fintech 4.0 - the fourth iteration of Tech Nation’s sector-specific growth programme for fintech entrepreneurs to enable their startups to scale, both at home and abroad.

Tax efficient investment manager Deepbridge Capital has announced that it has exceeded £200m of funds deployed across its EIS and Estate Planning Service funds, with a current NAV in excess of £250m.

Founded in 2010, Chester-based Deepbridge launched its first EIS fund in the 2013/14 tax year and specialises in providing venture capital to early-stage technology, life sciences and renewable energy companies.

Deepbridge has, to date, invested in 71 companies across the UK with Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) funding, a further 63 companies at Seed EIS stage, with three profitable exits.