More details revealed on Foresight’s new £20m West Yorkshire fund

More details have been revealed on private equity and infrastructure investment manager Foresight Group’s new £20m West Yorkshire fund.The firm announced yesterday (13 June 2022) that it had completed the first close of the Foresight West Yorkshire SME Investment Fund.Foresight was appointed by the West Yorkshire Combined Authority to manage the new £20m fund to support the growth of SMEs in the region.It will typically provide equity and debt investments of up to £2m in companies with annual revenues of between £1m and £20m, seeking continued growth.The fund will invest in high growth, small companies throughout West Yorkshire, supporting economic growth and creating sustainable, high-quality jobs. It will seek to invest in businesses from all communities and will also support their Net Zero ambitions.Among Foresight’s portfolio of more than 130 SMEs is West Yorkshire’s Roxy Ball Room, Reward Finance and Fresh Thinking Capital.Foresight has offices in Edinburgh, Cambridge, Manchester, Milton Keynes, Leicester and Nottingham, and is set to open a regional office in Leeds.The firm plans to recruit and develop a local team to invest the fund, which will be supported by its wider private equity team of more than 30 investment professionals.Matt Smith, partner at Foresight Group, said: “We are delighted to be launching this new fund in partnership with the West Yorkshire Combined Authority and look forward to making a significant contribution to the region’s economy. We know there are some outstanding SMEs in West Yorkshire and look forward to working with business communities to provide capital, support and advice.”Tracy Brabin, mayor of West Yorkshire, added: “I am very pleased we are launching this Fund to invest in high growth SMEs in West Yorkshire, across all sectors and with a focus on health, green tech, manufacturing and digital.”Investing in high growth businesses will speed up the creation of quality jobs for the people of West Yorkshire.”As mayor of West Yorkshire, I am working hard to make our region an even better place to live, learn, work and do business with and investing in our region’s brilliant SMEs is key to achieving this.”