Outward VC has successfully garnered £51m during the initial close of its second fund, aimed at providing crucial support to early-stage founders tackling significant societal challenges through financial services innovations.
The London-based investment firm, established in 2019, continues to target new enterprises working on critical issues such as data privacy, healthcare, education, and artificial intelligence.
The fund has secured a cornerstone investment of £30m from the British Business Bank through its Enterprise Capital Funds programme, renowned for supporting promising UK-based venture capital managers. Additionally, a broad spectrum of private investors has contributed to the fund, which will start investing immediately.
Outward VC has been instrumental in nurturing early-stage companies, having been one of the first investors in several successful startups including Bud, Curve, Peppy Health, and Vauban. The firm focuses on leading pre-Series A funding rounds, often investing up to £5m, with a strategy that includes substantial follow-on investments.
Co-Founder of Outward VC, Devin Kohli, emphasized the firm’s commitment to easing the early-stage journey for founders, often being the first contact point for addressing pivotal challenges.
Kohli said, “Starting out as a Founder is one of the toughest challenges out there, especially at the early stage. Our new fund continues our mission to make the early-stage experience easier for Founders, starting with leading their first institutional funding round. As a testament to our personalised approach, we are often the first call that our Founders make when facing an important challenge.”
Kevin Chong, another Co-Founder, added, We help early-stage start-ups breakthrough by leading their first institutional funding round. In our first fund, after we deployed £20m into early-stage funding rounds, our portfolio companies went on to secure over £570m of follow-on equity funding within three years.”
Since its inception, Outward VC has supported over 20 companies that bridge the gap between financial services and societal needs. This new fund reaffirms their role in partnering with founders during the most challenging phases of their development, ensuring continued innovation and growth in the FinTech sector.
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