£825M
NatWest and Lloyds have backed a financing package designed to accelerate the delivery of a 1GW solar pipeline.
"landmark transaction"
NatWest
CorporateNatWest Group is a relationship bank serving millions of people, families, and businesses across the UK and Ireland.
Portfolio
18
companies
Investment by month
By category
- Uncategorised£1.2B
- eCommerce£770M
- FinTech£463M
- CleanTech£410M
- EnergyTech£46.5M
- Other£34.4M
By location
- United Kingdom£1.3B
- Manchester£844M
- London£824M
Portfolio companies
AccessPay
AccessPay connects back office finance systems to banks for automated payment operations.
BG
BCN Group
BCN Group provides managed IT, cloud and digital transformation services.
B
Be.EV
Be.EV develops and operates public electric vehicle charging networks across the United Kingdom.
B
Bourn
Bourn provides a modern alternative to the business overdraft for growing enterprises.
C
Carbonplace
Carbonplace provides a carbon credit transaction network connecting buyers and sellers through banks.
C
Cirrus
Cirrus provides cloud-based contact centre software for digital customer service operations.
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Coadjute
Coadjute connects property market participants through a secure data network.
E
Enviromena
Enviromena develops and operates solar energy and battery storage infrastructure across Europe.
Icon Solutions
Icon Solutions provides payment systems and infrastructure technology for global banks.
P
Pollinate
Pollinate provides cloud-based software that helps banks modernise digital services for business customers.
Raylo
Raylo provides subscription payment services for consumer technology products.
S
Serene
Serene builds artificial intelligence tools to help financial institutions identify and support vulnerable customers.
S
Solarcentury
Solarcentury develops and builds large-scale solar power projects and smart energy technology.
SE
Statera Energy
Statera Energy develops and operates flexible energy storage and generation assets for the UK power network.
TH
The Hut Group
The Hut Group operates international online beauty and wellbeing retail brands powered by proprietary e-commerce technology.
Updraft
Updraft provides loan refinancing solutions to help members understand their financial profiles and pay off expensive debt.
Zen Internet
Zen Internet provides independent telecommunications and technology services across the UK.
Z
Zenobē
Zenobē operates electric vehicle fleets and provides battery storage solutions.
Team
HG
Howard Gillibrand
DC
David Caunce
KO
Kieran O’Malley
Emily Smithies
Senior Manager, TMT
Emily brings banking and venture experience from roles at NatWest, Coutts, and Fearless Adventures.
LinkedIn
Amy Wright
Amy brings corporate finance and debt advisory experience from roles at Grant Thornton and NatWest.
Rachael Cloke
Rachael brings portfolio management experience from NatWest, having previously held structured finance roles within the institution.
View all 20 team membersShow fewer
MM
Mike Malone
Director, Structured Finance
ML
Martyn Lylyk
Martyn brings corporate banking, credit management, and founding experience from NatWest, The Royal Bank of Scotland, and Bag and Go Limited.
LinkedIn
Drew Hayes
Relationship Director
Drew brings financial services experience from roles at NatWest and RBS.
LinkedIn
Phil Marshall
Phil brings commercial banking and relationship management experience from roles at NatWest and Yorkshire Bank.
LinkedIn
Kit Maclaren
Director at NatWest Growth Capital
Kit brings investment experience from YFM Equity Partners, NatWest Growth Capital, and RBS.
LinkedInRL
Rob Lamont
Director, Financial Institutions
MB
Mark Brant
Chief Payments Officer
IP
Ian Povey
Ian brings payments and board-level experience, including roles at Swift, NatWest, and Paypa Plane. He previously served as group CIO of payments technology services.
LinkedIn
Miguel Sard
Managing Director, One Bank Mortgages
Miguel brings extensive retail banking and mortgage experience from senior roles at Shawbrook, NatWest Group, and Banco Santander.
LinkedInDG
David Grunwald
Director of Innovation and Partnerships
LG
Ladi Greenstreet
Head of Strategic Investments
Ladi brings investment and operational experience from roles at NatWest, Diversity VC, and Accenture Ventures.
LinkedInMS
Milena Sheahan
Senior Director
JT
Joe Taylor
Head of Infrastructure, Project and Asset Finance
Bruce Riley
Managing Director and Head of Energy Transition
Bruce brings financial and energy transition experience, having previously led project finance and infrastructure finance roles at NatWest and RBS.
LinkedInRecent investments
£30.0M
The financing round comprises £10m in equity led by Citibank and £20m in debt from NatWest.
"Electronics brands are increasingly moving beyond one-time sales and toward subscription-first models. Our partnership with LG marks a key step in that transition, delivering clear value for both electronics brands and customers whilst expanding our category offering with a true global leader. It’s been great working with the LG team to bring this to market, and we’re excited about scaling the partnership together."
£3.5M
The funding round includes a strategic minority investment from NatWest Group alongside other backers.
"2025 has been a year of validation, proving that SMEs and their funding partners need a more modern, data-driven approach to working capital. This investment round is a huge vote of confidence. It shows that established banks see the same opportunity we do: to bring liquidity closer to the point of need and help businesses fund growth more dynamically. Our goal is to reinvent the business overdraft for SMEs. When working capital flows easily, businesses invest, hire, and grow. That’s how we make finance work for the real economy again."
UBS led the funding round to support the development of the Icon Payments Framework.
"This investment reinforces our partnership with Icon and confirms our commitment to deliver faster to market, future-ready payment solutions for our clients. The collaboration helps us drive innovation at scale and enhances our capabilities for seamless instant payments and advanced transaction processing."
£930K
The pre-seed round was led by Fuel Ventures with backing from NatWest Group and Oxford Seed Fund.
"At NatWest, we’re committed to anticipating and responding to customers’ changing needs. Platforms like Serene demonstrate how AI can enhance customer outcomes effectively and responsibly."
