British Business Bank (BBB), the London-based state backer of dozens of VC funds including Balderton Capital and Atomico, has ditched its VC-focused subsidiary British Patient Capital and is bringing the brand under the broader BBB name.
As of last month, “the British Business Bank has transitioned to a single, unified brand encompassing all our investment and banking products. As a result, the British Business Investments and British Patient Capital brands have been retired,” the BBB told Sifted. “This represents a great opportunity for the bank to tell a clearer story about what we offer to our customers, streamline operations and simplify the way we do business.” They added that “this is not a change of strategy” but “a brand architecture review.”
British Patient Capital has been a massive investor in UK funds as well as startups, with more than £3bn in assets under management. Since launching in 2018, it’s become one of Europe’s most active LPs.
Its VC investments include Atomico, Balderton Capital, Eurazeo and Hoxton Ventures. BPC has invested nearly £2bn into VC funds and co-investments since inception, according to its latest annual report.
The unification happened last month; British Patient Capital and British Business Investments will continue existing as legal entities and no contractual relationships will change, Sifted understands.
British Business Bank has also previously invested into VC funds under its own name, through its Enterprise Capital Fund programme, which was started in 2006 and backs VCs looking to invest in early-stage UK companies. Investments made through the programme include Amadeus Capital, Ada Ventures and Entrepreneur First.
The firm also hired its first CFO earlier this year, Leandros Kalisperas, who will oversee the bank’s investment programmes.
Read the orginal article: https://sifted.eu/articles/british-business-bank-retire-brand-vc/
