Northern Gritstone and Parkwalk launch Northern Universities Fund – UKTN

Investment groups Northern Gritstone and Parkwalk Advisors have jointly launched the Northern Universities Venture Fund targeting early-stage, IP-rich, science and deeptech opportunities at four major northern universities.

The fund, an Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) vehicle, will look for promising startups coming from the Universities of Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester and Sheffield.

The investment vehicle will be managed by Parkwalk and will be supported by Northern Gritstone’s existing multi-year partnership agreement with the ‘Northern Arc’ universities, which gives the investor preferred access to spinout opportunities.

“I am convinced that the UK’s first trillion-dollar business will emerge from investing into UK university science and technology,” said Duncan Johnson, chief executive of Northern Gritstone.

“The launch of Parkwalk’s Northern Universities Venture Fund is a way to bring untapped innovation from the North of England to a broader investor base.”

Moray Wright, chief executive of Parkwalk Advisors added: “This collaboration brings together two of the UK’s leading forces in university commercialisation.

“Parkwalk’s expertise in venture capital and deep tech, combined with Northern Gritstone’s unrivalled university partnerships, means we can offer investors access to an exceptional and underexploited pipeline of innovation,”

Northern Gritstone secured fundraising of £50m this year from institutional investors such as Aviva and Fulcrum Asset Management.

The Manchester-based investor’s founder, business and political figure Lord Jim O’Neill, who still chairs the group, said: “The North’s universities are home to some of the most exciting science and technology coming out of the UK.(L-R

“This collaboration with Parkwalk is an opportunity for investors to support what are potentially the next generation of global companies and to support regional growth to the benefit of the UK.”

This week, one of the north’s most prominent investors, Praetura Ventures, merged with Scottish group Par Equity to form regional investment entity PXN Group.

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