The Scottish National Investment Bank (“the Bank”) will launch the Scottish Universities Fund alongside Scotland’s higher education institutions at a ceremony this evening.

The fund, which will begin investing in spring of 2027, is designed to support the creation and growth of innovative businesses emerging from Scotland’s universities and aims to address a capital shortage through mobilising additional private investment.

The Bank will provide up to £65 million of cornerstone capital and establish the investment platform as a central point to engage investors, founders and partners. The fund will strengthen the journey from research and innovation to commercial success, helping university-linked businesses grow from early-stage development to scale-up. It is designed to work alongside our existing investor network, including Scottish Enterprise, and support the wider innovation ecosystem.

Two complementary investment strategies make up the Fund’s offer. The Ignition Strategy will fund pre-seed to seed businesses, while the Accelerator Strategy will contribute to Series A+ rounds, enabling companies to scale.

This Ignition Strategy will deploy early-stage capital in the £250,000 to £1.5m range. Of the Bank’s £65m cornerstone investment, £15m is earmarked for these investments.

The Accelerator Strategy will fund rounds in the region of £2m to £8m, and £50m of the Bank’s £65m cornerstone investment is earmarked for these rounds.

The launch, at the Bank’s Edinburgh office, will bring together university principals and other senior university leaders, founders, innovation organisations and government representatives around a shared ambition to increase the number and quality of high-growth companies emerging from Scotland’s universities and help them scale from Scotland.

Speaking ahead of the launch, David Ritchie, Chief Executive Officer of the Scottish National Investment Bank, said: “Scotland’s universities are among our greatest national assets. They produce world-class research, exceptional entrepreneurial talent and breakthrough ideas that can support long-term economic transformation.

“Despite Scotland delivering disproportionate research output compared to our population, founders can struggle to access the capital and business support needed to commercialise innovation and scale successful models.

“The Scottish Universities Fund is designed to help address that gap and create stronger pathways for ambitious companies to start, scale, and stay in Scotland.

“Our ambition is not simply to provide capital. It is to help build a stronger innovation ecosystem, attract additional private investment and ensure more of the value created by Scottish innovation is captured here in Scotland. This is an important step in delivering the Bank’s innovation mission and supporting Scotland’s long-term economic growth.”

Alyn Smith, Minister for Innovation, Technology and Tertiary Education is also due to attend the launch. He said: “Scotland’s universities are a national strength, and the Scottish Universities Fund is about making sure that strength is felt in good jobs, successful businesses and investment across the country. Our Programme for Government committed to launching a Scottish Innovation Fund focused on university spinouts, and today we are delivering on that.

“By working with the Bank and our universities to draw in private capital, we are helping more of Scotland’s research become high-growth companies that start, scale and stay here. That includes in areas where Scotland has real strengths, from health and life sciences to the energy transition and data and digital technologies.”

Sir Jim McDonald, Emeritus Principal of Strathclyde University, is co-author of Scotland’s National Innovation Strategy, a report commissioned by the Scottish Government with the aim of unlocking the innovation potential of Scotland’s Universities. The report recommended the creation of the Scottish Universities Fund, which the Bank is now delivering.

Ahead of the launch, he said: “Scotland has all the ingredients needed to be a leading innovation nation: world-class research, outstanding talent and internationally recognised universities. The challenge has always been ensuring more of that excellence is translated into successful businesses and economic impact.

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“The Scottish Universities Fund represents an important opportunity to strengthen the connection between research, innovation and commercial growth. By supporting ambitious founders and helping innovative companies access the capital and support they need, the Fund can play a significant role in building Scotland’s future economy.”

Unlike other parts of the UK, Scotland does not have a dedicated university fund. Scotland’s universities are internationally recognised for their research excellence and innovation, delivering 12% of UK research output against 8% of the population. However, many promising businesses continue to face challenges scaling in Scotland.

The Scottish Universities Fund has been established to help address this challenge and unlock greater economic value from Scotland’s academic and research strengths. The Fund is sector agnostic but will focus on areas aligned with Scotland’s research strengths, including:

• • health and life science
  • energy transition
  • data and digital technologies
  • advanced manufacturing

Universities are not required to invest in the Fund to participate. Instead, they are invited to become strategic partners, helping strengthen the pipeline of innovation and commercial opportunity emerging from their institutions.