Midlands Engine Investment Fund invests £200m into region’s businesses

The Midlands Engine Investment Fund (MEIF) has now invested over £200m into Midlands businesses since its launch in 2017.

The debt and equity funding options offered by the MEIF have benefitted 595 businesses across the region and has supported SMEs in the creation of jobs, investment into new products and services and wider growth opportunities.

The Marches LEP and Marches Growth Hub work closely with MEIF across Herefordshire, Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin to support businesses looking to access finance.

Figures for MEIF show it has:

• Invested more than £200m invested, with £301m of private sector co-investment unlocked
• Made 856 investments in 595 businesses
• Created 2,371 jobs   

Businesses in various sectors benefit from MEIF funding, including its ongoing investment in the region’s sustainable development and green technology.

A recent sustainability investment into renewable energy provided debt funding to Nottingham-based Roadgas, to support the company’s growth in supplying further renewable gas refuelling stations across the UK.

Birmingham-headquartered I-Phyc received £2.3m to support expansion of its nature-based wastewater treatment solutions through the MEIF’s Proof of Concept & Early Stage Fund to create new jobs.

Ken Cooper, Managing Director at the British Business Bank, said:

“Our partnership with key regional stakeholders including Local Enterprise Partnerships and our fund managers has played a significant role in reaching this new milestone. Investment by MEIF has been shown to promote resilience, innovation and productivity in supported SMEs and has helped diversify and strengthen the region’s finance landscape.  We look forward to continuing this through the next £100m of investment.”

Jon Corbett, Chair of Strategic Oversight Board for the Midlands Engine Investment Fund, added:

“The Midlands Engine Investment Fund provides financing options to smaller businesses with potential in the Midlands. The funding allows businesses to achieve their goals and give entrepreneurs the opportunity to realise their growth ambitions.

“MEIF funding has helped many SMEs contribute to the wider economic growth of the Midlands and its wider economic goals through investment to support safeguarding existing jobs, creating new roles, overcoming challenges faced during the pandemic, and helping the region’s businesses to reach their full potential.

“While we’re celebrating another milestone, we hope to help many more businesses and entrepreneurs who have innovative and sustainable ideas in the future by breaking down the barriers of access to traditional finance and will allow the Midlands region to continue to prosper.”

The Midlands Engine Investment Fund project is supported financially by the European Union using funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020 and the European Investment Bank.