Tech investor Molten Ventures plc has announced the first close of its Growth Fund at £175 million.
The fund is a continuation of Molten’s existing investment strategy of Series B+ investments, with a track record of more than 40 deals and over £700m invested in the past 10 years.
The fund offers private institutional capital the opportunity to invest at scale through a private fund structure, while benefiting from the public vehicle’s platform and governance.
The British Business Bank has committed £75m as its cornerstone investor. Molten Ventures has committed the remaining £100m of the first close and will continue to seek additional investors, with the aim of growing the Growth Fund to a target of £350m.
The Growth Fund will invest in companies at the forefront of innovation across key technology sectors including space, AI, FinTech, quantum, DeepTech and hardware, providing them with the liquidity they need to compete globally, while giving Molten greater ability to build meaningful ownership positions in high-conviction businesses.
The British Business Bank has been an investor in Molten’s listed platform since 2018 and has co-invested alongside Molten in several high-growth UK technology companies, including SatVu, IMU Biosciences, Thought Machine and Paragraf.
“Securing the British Business Bank as cornerstone investor is a strong endorsement of Molten’s strategy and of the relationship we have built over many years,” said Molten Ventures CEO Ben Wilkinson (pictured).
“It also underlines the importance of bringing more long-term institutional capital into venture and Growth, so that ambitious UK and European technology companies have the backing they need to scale.
“Molten has a strong track record in growth investing, with more than 40 growth-profile deals completed and over £700m invested. The Growth Fund builds on that experience and gives us a dedicated vehicle to support more companies as they scale.
“There is no shortage of exceptional founders or technology businesses in the UK and Europe; what they too often lack is sufficient growth capital to help them become global leaders.
“This Fund gives Molten greater firepower to back our highest-conviction companies at Series B and beyond, build meaningful ownership positions and channel capital into the next generation of growth.
“Alongside our other strategies, including Molten Secondaries, the Growth Fund will strengthen our ability to connect long-term capital with companies that are shaping the future.”
Robert Greenwood, senior director, funds at British Business Bank, said: “To create deeper pools of late-stage capital for breakthrough technologies, we are helping UK tech investors to launch new growth funds. This commitment is the latest example of that strategy.
“Molten Ventures is one of the UK’s leading growth investors, with a strong track record of backing fast-growing technology businesses. This fund will help the next generation of tech entrepreneurs scale faster and build global companies from the UK.”