We are delighted to announce the launch of our University of Cambridge Enterprise Fund (UCEF) X. The Fund is managed by Parkwalk in conjunction with Cambridge Enterprise, the university’s research commercialisation arm, backing the very best early-stage start ups from the Cambridge ecosystem.
Monday 30 September 2024, London: Parkwalk today announced the launch of the University of Cambridge Enterprise Fund (UCEF) X, the tenth in a series with Cambridge Enterprise. The Fund will once again offer investors the opportunity to invest in companies formed to commercialise scientific and technological discoveries made at the University of Cambridge, whilst benefitting from tax reliefs under the Enterprise Investment Scheme (‘EIS’).
Cambridge is one of Europe’s most productive technology clusters, having spawned 20 companies valued at more than $1 billion (including ARM, Xaar, Abcam and more). At the heart of the cluster sits the University of Cambridge, one of the world’s most successful universities, which consistently sits in the top 4 in terms of world rankings.
Previous University of Cambridge Enterprise Funds have provided backing to 100+ early-stage science and tech-based businesses, such as Paragraf, the first company in the world to mass produce graphene-based electronic devices using standard semiconductor processes; Cambridge GaN Devices, a spin out from the High Voltage Microelectronics and Sensors lab. One of the founders, Florin Udrea, was behind the success of Cambridge CMOS Sensors (an exit from Parkwalk); and Cytora, whichtransforms underwriting for commercial insurance. Their platform is powered by Generative AI enabling insurers to accelerate configurability, scalability and performance across all lines of business.
The tenth Fund will continue to invest in early-stage, high-growth, research-intensive companies. These spin-outs are based directly on academic research, deep science businesses developed by students, or companies emerging from Cambridge’s innovation ecosystem. The Fund will support companies founded on Cambridge’s research, helping transform these new scientific discoveries into tomorrow’s solutions.
Anne Dobree, Investment Director at Parkwalk, said: “We are pleased to launch the tenth fund with the team at Cambridge Enterprise, the University’s dedicated research commercialisation arm. With our expertise in scaling and commercialising early-stage university spin-outs, and the University of Cambridge’s impressive global top-4 position in R&D, we are excited to be backing the next wave of entrepreneurs. Our support for the Founders at Cambridge accelerator right through to our larger EIS funds, demonstrates our commitment to the full growth cycle for university spin-outs in Cambridge.”
Parkwalk is the largest growth EIS Fund Manager and backs world-changing technologies emerging from the UK’s leading universities and research institutions. With £500m of assets under management, the company has invested in over 180 companies across its own funds and those it manages for the University of Cambridge and others.
Find out more information about the Fund here. To request fund documentation or more information on University of Cambridge Enterprise Fund X please email our team at investor.relations@parkwalkadvisors.com.