Major investment for firms in the North

23/10/06 00:00

The launch of two new funds, the Evolve Mezzanine and NEL Growth Funds, will provide finance for small growing companies that are struggling to raise funds from traditional sources.

The NEL Growth Fund will target companies with a high growth potential, offering capital injections of up to £350,000 at key stages of their expansion, with a maximum of £500,000 being invested in any one business.

The Evolve Mezzanine Fund, meanwhile, will provide unsecured loans of up to £500,000, together with an equity option, to ambitious companies who are looking for alternative sources of finance. It will also support management buy out or buy in deals.

Almost half of the money for the new funds was contributed by the European Regional Development Fund, while other backers include the North East Regional Investment Fund Ltd and Barclays Bank.

“These two new funds complete a comprehensive suite of funding underpinned by publicly backed investment,” commented Malcolm Page, of the regional development agency One NorthEast.

“(They will be) helping some of our most dynamic companies at critically important stages in their evolution.”

The north east can now boast more money available to invest in small and medium-sized businesses per head of the population than any other English region, according to Morgan-Williams.Hugh, chairman of North East Regional Investment Fund Ltd.

The launch of the Evolve Mezzanine and NEL Growth Funds brings to £115m the total amount of finance made available to the region’s firms over the past six years.