Council-run Fhunded wins North's top investor award after steering £35M into Lancashire startups
What's the deal? FhundedDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, Lancashire County Council's early-stage equity investment programme, has been named Tech Investor of the Year at the Prolific North Tech Awards. It beat two Manchester-based finalists, GC AngelsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → and EHE Studio.
By the numbers: FhundedDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → says it has helped facilitate over £35m into early-stage Lancashire ventures since 2023 — 47% of all verified equity investment raised by Lancashire businesses in that period. Of that, over £2m came through the Fhunded Angels network, which the programme calls the UK's largest angel syndicate managed by a local authority.
Why now? Before Fhunded launched in 2023, Lancashire was considered a difficult place for equity investment. In the past year alone, the programme brought over 20 venture capital firms to Lancashire to meet founders face to face.
What's the endgame? The programme matches local startups with venture capital firms and private investors to close deals that might otherwise not happen. The Fhunded Angels network has recruited over 50 members since launching last year.
The award is the third Prolific North accolade won by an Innovate LancashireDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → project in as many years. Judges called the entry "credible, well-evidenced," with one praising its "genuinely impactful track record of delivering angel investment in a geography that I suspect would otherwise struggle to attract investment."
Amin Vepari, the council's business finance and scaleup lead, said: "In just three years, Fhunded has transformed perceptions of Lancashire as place to do equity deals."
The signal: The win highlights a locally focused matchmaking model against a persistent regional funding gap. A recent DealroomDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → report found northern tech received only 3.7% of UK tech venture-capital investment, and the £35m figure is not, by itself, evidence that the broader access-to-capital gap has closed.
Read more: innovatelancashire.co.uk
Image credit: Lancashire County Council
