Midven Rainbow Seed Fund

Midven Rainbow Seed Fund is a £24 million early-stage venture capital fund dedicated to kick-starting promising technology companies emerging from the UK science base. The fund is managed by Midven, a privately owned commercial venture fund manager with a successful track record of investing in and exiting from small and medium-sized enterprises. It is backed by ten UK publicly-funded research organisations and the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills.

The fund focuses on investing in small to medium enterprises (SMEs) developing tools, platforms, and products across various sectors, including healthcare, agriculture, clean and green technologies, and synthetic biology. Individual investments range from £25,000 to £500,000 over the lifetime of the company or project, generally spanning 3-8 years. Since its inception, the Rainbow Seed Fund has leveraged over £150 million of private investment from its own £7 million investment, supported over 30 start-ups, and created more than 255 technology-related jobs with £40 million of export sales.

Midven Rainbow Seed Fund aims to bridge the 'Valley of Death' by providing early-stage funding to companies transitioning from research to market-ready products. The fund's portfolio includes investments in areas as diverse as novel antibiotics, research into Alzheimer's disease, 'green' chemicals, and airport security. By investing early and helping build propositions to attract additional investment, the fund plays a crucial role in translating high-quality research into useful products, tools, and services.