Linda Hanna

The awards have been made via the Early Stage Growth Challenge Fund, part of a £38m package of early-stage support announced by the Scottish Government in July.

The fund, managed by Scottish Enterprise (SE), was established to help Scotland’s most promising emerging businesses continue to innovate through the pandemic.

Fiona Hyslop, economy secretary, said: “The energy and ideas of Scotland’s entrepreneurs and innovators have always fuelled the nation’s economic growth, creating high-value jobs and accelerating international investment in Scotland. However, we recognise that these businesses are not immune to the impact of the pandemic. Many are facing a challenging investment market which restricts their ability to grow, innovate and compete internationally.

“Our investment of £38m will provide young and innovative businesses in some of our most exciting emerging sectors, such as life sciences, digital technologies and space, with the most comprehensive and generous support available anywhere in the UK.”

Linda Hanna, Scottish Enterprise interim CEO, added: “There was concern among Scotland’s early-stage ecosystem that the coronavirus pandemic would cause investment levels to reduce dramatically, potentially wiping out a generation of Scotland’s up-and-coming businesses. The creation of the early-stage support package, developed by Scottish Enterprise on behalf of the Scottish Government, has proved to be an important intervention.

“Through the Early Stage Growth Challenge Fund, we’ve been able to provide several of Scotland’s most pioneering young companies with the financial support necessary to overcome obstacles to growth created by COVID-19.”

In addition to the Early Stage Growth Challenge Fund, the early-stage support programme comprised £3m for pre-seed start-up companies and spin-out projects, and £10m for SE’s existing co-investment funds.