British Patient Capital, the venture capital subsidiary of the UK government-owned British Business Bank, has announced that it is injecting $50.8m (£40.6m) into venture capital firm Evolution Equity Partners.
Sheffield-based UK Partner Capital is following up a $35m investment in Evolution’s second fund of 2020 with a new addition in its third fund scouting UK cyber security and enterprise software companies.
Christine Hockley, managing director at British Patient Capital, said: “Evolution Equity Partners’ cyber security expertise combined with a proven investment track record positions them to successfully support the UK’s leading technology companies as they scale.
“We are delighted to invest in this fund, which is in line with our goal of supporting promising companies to access the long-term funding they need to fulfill their growth potential.”
Evolution wants to take advantage of the UK as a cyber security hotspot. It has already invested in technology companies such as Panaseer and Quantexa, which received unicorn status last year, meaning it is valued at over $1 billion.
Successful UK cyber security companies include Sophos and London-based Darktrace, which recently upgraded its revenue forecast.
Richard Seewald, founder and managing partner at Evolution Equity Partners, said: “We are delighted to be working with British Patient Capital and NSSIF to support UK cyber security companies with capital and to equip them with the knowledge, tools and strategy to drive performance and results on the global market.
“Cybersecurity is mission critical to the safety of UK businesses, government and consumers and with the current environment it demonstrates the importance of next generation technology that defends and protects our society and way of life. We look forward to working with the the best contractors and build European champions.”
The cyber security industry is currently in high demand due to an increase in attacks, particularly against high-income businesses and charities. This has been driven in part by artificial intelligence (AI) that makes it easier for hackers to infiltrate systems and generate more realistic threats such as phishing emails.
Robert Greenwood, investment director at British Patient Capital, said: “Cybersecurity began as a niche sub-sector of technology. With widespread adoption and development of technology, we have seen it evolve over the past twenty years as attack surfaces have expanded to become a key application across all sectors as companies strive to protect themselves, their customers and their product.
“This investment demonstrates the UK’s role in leading cyber security innovation and demonstrates its expertise in this valuable technology. We are delighted to commit to Evolution’s new fund and support this fast-growing sector which will provide vital services to all business sectors,” he added.
