We are delighted to announce the launch of the Northern Universities Venture Fund, in collaboration with Northern Gritstone, offering access to world-class university spinouts and deep science startups from the Northern Arc Universities of Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester and Sheffield.
19th June 2025 – Parkwalk Advisors, in collaboration with Northern Gritstone, the venture building and investment company chaired by Lord Jim O’Neill, today announces the launch of the Northern Universities Venture Fund (“the Fund”), a new Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) fund offering investors access to early-stage IP-rich science and deeptech investment opportunities from the Universities of Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester and Sheffield.
The Fund will be managed by Parkwalk Advisors, the UK’s most active university spinout investor with over £500 million of assets under management and target investments across sectors such as quantum computing, AI, engineering biology, semiconductors, healthtech and clean technology.
The Fund is supported by Northern Gritstone differentiating itself from other university-linked EIS’s through Northern Gritstone’s multi-year agreements with the four ‘Northern Arc’ universities, giving it preferred investor access to university spinout opportunities.
Northern Gritstone recently announced further fundraising of £50 million from leading institutional investors including Aviva and Fulcrum Asset Management, bringing its total capital commitment to £362 million. The collaboration aims to offer a new investment channel, fully managed by Parkwalk, specifically for high net worth individuals
Duncan Johnson, CEO of Northern Gritstone, said “I am convinced that the UK’s first trillion-dollar business will emerge from investing into UK university science and technology. The launch of Parkwalk’s Northern Universities Venture Fund is a way to bring untapped innovation from the North of England to a broader investor base.”
Moray Wright, CEO of Parkwalk Advisors, said “This collaboration brings together two of the UK’s leading forces in university commercialisation. Parkwalk’s expertise in venture capital and deep tech, combined with Northern Gritstone’s unrivalled university partnerships, means we can offer investors access to an exceptional and underexploited pipeline of innovation.”
Lord Jim O’Neill, Chair of Northern Gritstone, said ” The North’s universities are home to some of the most exciting science and technology coming out of the UK. This collaboration with Parkwalk is an opportunity for investors to support what are potentially the next generation of global companies and to support regional growth to the benefit of the UK.”
To find out more about the Fund, click here.
About Northern Gritstone
Northern Gritstone is an investment company, dedicated to supporting ambitious science and technology businesses in the North of England. Its philosophy is ‘profit with purpose’ combining strong returns for investors with wider positive, societal and economic impact, including high-skilled job creation and regional growth. Active since May 2022, the company has made 37 investments to date in some of the UK’s most exciting future businesses including semiconductor design and manufacturing; novel materials; secure computing; AI; healthtech; and gene therapies.
Together with NG Innovation Services, Northern Gritstone offers ‘Capital+++’ connecting early-stage company founders with funding and expertise to scale their businesses.
In April 2025, Northern Gritstone announced that it had raised further funding bringing its total committed capital to £362 million.
Learn more at: www.northern-gritstone.com
About Parkwalk
Parkwalk Advisors is the UK’s largest growth EIS fund manager and the most active investor in university spinouts, with over £500 million in assets under management. Parkwalk has invested in over 180 companies and manages university-specific funds for Cambridge, Oxford, Bristol and Imperial College London. A subsidiary of IP Group plc, Parkwalk supports the commercialisation of cutting-edge research and transformative technologies.
Learn more at: www.parkwalkadvisors.com
Parkwalk Advisors Limited (Parkwalk) is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority: FRN 502237. Investments referred to in this news article are not suitable for all investors. Capital is at risk and investors may not get back the full amount invested. Any investment in a Parkwalk product must only be made on the basis of the terms of the full Information Memorandum. Tax treatment depends on the individual circumstances of each investor. Parkwalk is not able to provide advice as to the suitability of investing in any product. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results. This financial promotion was approved in June 2025.
