Mercia Fund Management to participate in £8.5m accelerator programme

Specialist technology funder Mercia Fund Management will take part in a new £8.5 million scheme to provide fledgling firms with combined grant funding and venture capital.

MFM, part of Warwickshire-based Mercia Technologies, will partner with Innovate UK’s new Investment Accelerator initiative.

Investment is targeted at innovative early stage companies which operate in infrastructure or health and life sciences.

MFM will join six other organisations which will provide private sector investment alongside grants injecting up to £150,000 into successfully selected companies.

Mercia will consider applications from companies that support infrastructure systems, as well as the health and life sciences sector from which it already has an expansive portfolio, including AIM listed Concepta, Oxford Genetics and The Native Antigen Company.

Peter Dines, Head of Life Sciences and Bio-sciences at Mercia, said: “I am delighted that Mercia has been invited as a partner for this programme. Innovate UK has very clear aims in the delivery of this project and we believe that Mercia is well positioned to help fund and scale innovative applications into commercial opportunities. We look forward to reviewing new opportunities as they arise and working alongside Innovate and other partners.”

The programme will bring private investors into Innovate UK grant-funded companies earlier, giving companies greater confidence that investment will continue after the project funding.

The registration deadline set at June 28. The final date for applications is July 5.