Northern Gritstone has secured £50 million in new funding to expand its investments in early-stage life sciences and deep tech businesses in the North of England.
The capital injection includes £35 million from Northern LGPS, the asset pool representing pension funds for Greater Manchester, Merseyside and West Yorkshire. The remaining £15 million comes from new backers Fulcrum Asset Management and Aviva. This latest raise brings Northern Gritstone’s total capital to £362 million.
Targeting university spinouts, the firm backs high-growth businesses in sectors such as semiconductor design, advanced materials, secure computing, artificial intelligence, healthtech, and gene therapies. Since its 2022 launch, Northern Gritstone has completed 32 investments, grown its investment team, and introduced its in-house accelerator, NG Studios.
As part of its growth, the company has added Paddy Dowdall, assistant director at the Greater Manchester Pension Fund, to its board as a non-executive director.
The move signals continued momentum for Northern Gritstone’s strategy of building a robust regional innovation ecosystem by turning academic research into commercially viable ventures. The firm is positioning itself as a key player in unlocking the commercial potential of university R&D in the North.
