Stride.VC plants £50m seed fund to grow UK startups

VCs are in the vanguard of many business successes. And Stride.VC, the new VC capital firm, has revealed a £50m seed fund with which it plans to bolster UK-based tech startups

Stride.VC plants £50m seed fund to grow UK startups

The entrepreneurial ecosystem in Blighty is booming. Of course, many startup owners rely on investors for money as well as their expertise to scale and develop, acting as a catalyst. In fact, during the third quarter this year, UK VC funding hit £1.4bn, according to KPMG Enterprise, the professional services company.

And the latest business backer to join the industry is Stride.VC, the seed stage VC fund, spawned by Fred Destin and Harry Stebbings in May 2017, which finally achieved its £50m goal. It’s great news for British entrepreneurs as the pot will be used exclusively for seed investments in the UK. It was in July 2018 the VC firm confirmed securing its initial £40m fund. And even made its first investment of $3.9m in October 2018 to fund health messaging app-based startup Forward Health.

Apart from money, both the VCs come with notable experience in business growth. Destin, the veteran venture capitalist, was a former partner at VC firm Accel and was the lead investor and board member at Deliveroo, Pillpack and Carwow. And his partner Stebbings is the producer of The Twenty Minute VC podcast where he brings in VCs and company bosses to shed light on business matters for his audience of entrepreneurs. The team also saw Arj Soysa, who served as head of finance in VC firm LGT Impact, join as operating partner.

Commenting on achieving their goal, Destin told Techcrunch: “We think tech startups are impacting more and more industries and sectors so the importance and impact of great founders is growing. It’s logical that the VC market grows alongside the startup ecosystem. Just look at the amazing diversity of projects coming out of London and the spread of industries people are going after.”

While it might not be easy to convince a VC to invest in you, it’s definitely worth the effort. Looking at this new fund and the dream team behind, it might be the perfect time to prepare your pitch and capitalise on funding opportunities.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Varsha Saraogi
Varsha Saraogi
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