Early-stage founders outside major tech hubs often struggle to raise capital. While talent is spread across the UK, access to patient, long-term funding is still heavily concentrated in London and the South East, leaving many promising startups underfunded at the pre-Seed and Seed stages
Here’s where Ascension Ventures comes into play! The British VC has secured a new commitment of up to £10 million to support early-stage companies across the UK. The funding comes from the British Business Bank through its Regional Angels Programme, which was launched to reduce regional gaps in access to equity finance.
This commitment supports this mission, enhancing access to capital for early-stage businesses across diverse sectors and ensuring that innovative founders outside of London and the South East have access to the patient capital required to scale.
Mark Barry, Senior Investment Director at British Business Bank, said, “We’re delighted to partner with Ascension, who have an incredible founder-friendly reputation. This reputation, coupled with their demonstrated commitment to investing commercially with impact across the UK, makes this an exciting opportunity through our Regional Angels Programme.
The new commitment supports Ascension to back founders beyond London and the South East, particularly at the pre-Seed and Seed stages, where funding remains hardest to secure.
The latest funding follows the firm’s €19.8 million Tech4Good pre-Seed fund, which closed in 2024.
Jean de Fougerolles, Managing Partner at Ascension, says, “We have long believed that talent is distributed across the UK, but opportunity is not. This up to £10m commitment from the British Business Bank allows us to double down on our mission to back exceptional founders regardless of their postcode.”
“Crucially, this partnership bolsters our commitment to the regions, allowing us to deploy capital alongside our other funds. It reinforces our strategy to write high-conviction cheques, providing the patient, long-term support that regional founders need to build category-defining companies.”
This strategic partnership will see Ascension deploy the Bank’s capital alongside its existing funds (EIS/SEIS) and its institutional impact fund, Ascension Fund III.
Ascension has been one of the most active technology investors in the UK since 2015, and was the 2022 Seed VC of the year (finalist in 2025) and Impact Leader runner-up at last year’s EUVC Awards.
Founded in 2015, Ascension Ventures manages more than €115 million (£100 million) in assets. The firm has backed over 150 early-stage companies and recorded 15 exits to date. The latest partnership is expected to further deepen its role in supporting long-term, early-stage growth across the UK’s startup ecosystem.
