Private capital in the North West 2025

The data makes clear that the North West is an exciting destination for private capital, whose investment supports the development of 873 businesses which call this region home. These businesses bring value to local communities through the 247,000 jobs they support. 

In 2024 alone, private capital invested £2.3bn into the North West. This level of investment is unsurprising when you consider the inherent economic strengths of the region, especially with cities like Manchester seeing such rapid growth and development over recent years. The region now acts as a significant investment hub, especially with academic institutions like the University of Manchester, University of Liverpool and Lancaster University now producing even more innovative business spinouts. 

However, while there is much to celebrate about the scope and scale of investment in the region’s businesses, it could be even more substantial and close the gap with other parts of the country. Policymakers, regulators, and industry all have a role to play in helping to facilitate greater levels of investment in the region, to ensure that opportunities are not lost. 

Together we can address the main barriers by closing the scale up gap, boosting access to skills and talent and improving regional infrastructure. Unless otherwise stated, all data in this report is sourced from the BVCA’s Report on Investment Activity 2024 and Economic contribution of UK private equity and venture capital in 2025, produced by EY.