The UK treasury has published details of an initiative designed to research long term alternative capital funding for ‘innovative’ UK businesses.
The ‘patient capital review’ was announced by the UK government in November 2016 to establish long-term funding methods to ‘support innovative firms to access the finance that they need to scale up’.
HM Treasury will lead the review and will report to UK Chancellor Phillip Hammond. The Treasury has recruited a strong industry panel of investors and entrepreneurs, with involvement of the British Business Bank and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.
Private equity professional Damon Buffini will lead the consultation.
The objectives of the consultation will:
- consider the availability of long-term finance for growing innovative firms looking to scale up
- identify the long-term root causes affecting the availability of long-term finance for growing innovative firms, including any barriers that investors may face in providing long-term finance
- review international best practices to inform recommendations for the UK market
- consider the role of market practice and market norms in facilitating investment in long-term finance
- assess what changes in government policy, if any, are needed to support the expansion of long-term capital for growing innovative firms
The review began in January and will publish its consultation in the Spring, with final recommendations presented to the chancellor ahead of the 2017 Autumn Budget.
