Key Takeaways
- • UK Private Capital and insurer Gallagher launched a report in Manchester, as part of the UK Private Capital roadshow, finding private capital backs 873 North West businesses (393 by private equity, 480 by venture capital) supporting around 247,000 jobs.
- • Private capital-backed businesses generated £15.7bn in gross domestic product in 2025, with 2025 investment including £1.4bn of buyout, £214m of venture capital and £166m of growth capital.
- • The report identifies 171 active university spinouts across the North West, including 70 in Manchester, 21 in Liverpool and 17 in Lancaster, yet describes commercialisation of university research as an underdeveloped part of the ecosystem.
- • Henham Strategy analysis commissioned for the report finds North West firms with private capital backing are 20% more likely to sustain annualised revenue growth above 10%, venture-backed firms are 40% more likely to be internationalised, and venture-backed firms are 2.5 times more likely to file patents.
- • Fund managers' reluctance to establish a physical presence outside London and the South East, and a shortage of early-stage and follow-on capital, are cited as the main constraints on regional investment.
Summary
UK Private Capital, in partnership with insurance broker Gallagher, launched a report in Manchester as its roadshow reached the city, presenting private capital's footprint in the North West as substantial. According to the report, private capital backs 873 businesses across the region, 393 through private equity and 480 through venture capital, supporting around 247,000 jobs. Those businesses generated £15.7bn in gross domestic product in 2025. Investment activity in 2025 comprised £1.4bn of buyout investment in established companies, £214m of venture capital for early-stage businesses and £166m of growth capital. UK Private Capital chief executive Michael Moore said the region had attracted more than £8.5bn of investment over the past five years.
The report frames the North West's university base as a major asset, citing research strengths at the University of Manchester, the University of Liverpool and Lancaster University, and life sciences hubs in Liverpool, Daresbury and Alderley Park. It identifies 171 active university spinouts across the region. The report nonetheless characterises commercialisation of university research as a critical but underdeveloped part of the ecosystem, citing structural and cultural barriers that slow the path from discovery to investable business.
The report also points to a persistent North-South divide. It states that many fund managers remain reluctant to establish a physical presence outside London and the South East, reducing local networks and access to decision-makers, and that Manchester increasingly serves as the region's focal point for capital. It also cites a persistent shortage of early-stage and follow-on private capital due to the low density of locally based venture investors.
Analysis by Henham Strategy, commissioned for the report, found North West companies with private capital backing were 20% more likely to deliver sustained annualised revenue growth above 10% per year than unbacked firms. Venture-backed firms were 40% more likely to be internationalised and 2.5 times more likely to file patents, according to the report.
Recommendations include scaling programmes that help spinouts commercialise and raise external funding, ensuring pension reforms and Local Government Pension Scheme pooling support regional growth, improving SME awareness of private equity and venture capital, strengthening regional skills infrastructure, modernising high-skilled visa routes, and accelerating planning decisions for transport, energy, digital infrastructure and strategic growth sites.
The report frames the North West's university base as a major asset, citing research strengths at the University of Manchester, the University of Liverpool and Lancaster University, and life sciences hubs in Liverpool, Daresbury and Alderley Park. It identifies 171 active university spinouts across the region. The report nonetheless characterises commercialisation of university research as a critical but underdeveloped part of the ecosystem, citing structural and cultural barriers that slow the path from discovery to investable business.
The report also points to a persistent North-South divide. It states that many fund managers remain reluctant to establish a physical presence outside London and the South East, reducing local networks and access to decision-makers, and that Manchester increasingly serves as the region's focal point for capital. It also cites a persistent shortage of early-stage and follow-on private capital due to the low density of locally based venture investors.
Analysis by Henham Strategy, commissioned for the report, found North West companies with private capital backing were 20% more likely to deliver sustained annualised revenue growth above 10% per year than unbacked firms. Venture-backed firms were 40% more likely to be internationalised and 2.5 times more likely to file patents, according to the report.
Recommendations include scaling programmes that help spinouts commercialise and raise external funding, ensuring pension reforms and Local Government Pension Scheme pooling support regional growth, improving SME awareness of private equity and venture capital, strengthening regional skills infrastructure, modernising high-skilled visa routes, and accelerating planning decisions for transport, energy, digital infrastructure and strategic growth sites.
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