The BVCA Celebrates 40th Anniversary
The British Private Equity & Venture Capital Association (BVCA), the industry body and public policy advocate for the UK’s private capital industry, celebrates its 40th anniversary this year.
In the past four decades since the BVCA was founded, private capital in the UK has grown from a niche sector within the financial industry to be part of the mainstream economy. Since 1983, the BVCA has actively represented the diverse community of long-term investors in its membership to government, media and wider society.
In 2021 private equity and venture capital underlined its status as part of the mainstream economy. BVCA members alone invested over £17bn in UK businesses in 2021. These investments ranged across a spectrum from start-ups to long-established businesses with 90% of the businesses backed being small and medium sized enterprises.1 Private capital backed businesses span the length and breadth of the UK, supporting almost 2 million jobs and representing 5% of the UK’s GDP. Almost 70% of those jobs are in businesses headquartered outside of London.2
BVCA Director General, Michael Moore, commented:
“In the past 40 years private capital in the UK has grown from a niche financial sector to one that is a major player in the mainstream UK economy.
Across the UK, our members are supporting businesses that create jobs, support communities and drive economic growth and we look forward to supporting our members as they continue to invest in a better future. From creating medicines to protect us against Covid-19, to backing innovative companies in their quest to find solutions to our low-carbon future, private capital plays a critical role in addressing the future challenges we face as a society.”
The BVCA’s membership comprises more than 750 firms, including over 325 private equity and venture capital businesses, over 100 institutional investors and more than 200 professional services firms.
About the British Private Equity & Venture Capital Association (BVCA)
The BVCA, as the representative body for private equity (PE) and venture capital (VC), connects institutional investors, fund managers, companies, advisers and service providers together, with our membership currently comprising more than 750 businesses from across the private capital ecosystem. This includes more than 325 PE and VC firms, 100 institutional investors and 220 professional services firms.
Private capital drives growth – providing the funding, expertise and long-term view that enables companies to innovate and flourish. Our mission is to advocate the transformative nature of the private equity and venture capital community.
For more information on any of the above, please contact External Communications Manager, Karen Keany, [email protected] or the BVCA Press Office at [email protected].
- Source: BVCA Report on Investment Activity 2021
- Source: EY Report - Measuring the contribution of private equity and venture capital to the UK economy in 2021
