Financing Opportunities for the Creative Field
In the dynamic landscape of the UK's creative industries, venture capital (VC) investment trends have shown regional variations and evolving strategies, driven by both public and private sector initiatives.
United Kingdom overall and key trends:
The British Business Bank (BBB) is playing a significant role by mobilising new capital focused on scaling UK growth companies, including creative-sector firms. The British Growth Partnership (BGP), launched by the BBB, plans to open new venture funds primarily targeting later-stage growth rounds (Series C+), with significant capital deployment planned, potentially raising hundreds of millions of pounds. This reflects a broader push to scale high-potential firms in strategic sectors across the UK [1].
Media and creative sectors are witnessing a rise in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity and venture interest. Notable trends include cross-border deals and expansion into adjacent markets like live events, gaming, and content production. Private equity is increasingly driving growth investments after a period of defensive consolidation, especially in mid-market creative companies focused on AdTech, Connected TV, social media, and social commerce [3].
The UK advertising sector, which is closely tied to creative industries, saw an 8% growth in ad spend in Q1 2025 to £10.6bn, suggesting underlying vitality in the sector that can attract VC confidence [2].
Regional trends:
In the Midlands, unlike the national trend of falling investment (from £3.8bn in Q1 to £2.6bn in Q2 2025 nationally), venture capital investment bucked the trend by experiencing growth. This indicates a strong regional dynamism in venture funding, potentially impacting creative and tech startups in that region [5].
The South East and London remain hotspots especially for start-ups, including numerous unicorns, with the UK boasting a unicorn ecosystem valued at over $205 billion largely driven by tech and fintech but also encompassing creative-tech overlaps [4].
Summary of VC focus in creative industries by region:
| Region | Trend Highlights | Notes | |---------------|---------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------| | UK-wide | British Business Bank’s strategic growth funds; focus on scaling mature startups; increased M&A activity in media and content | Large-scale public capital mobilization [1][3] | | London/South East | Concentration of unicorn startups and high-value tech ventures including creative-tech | Dynamic startup ecosystem valued at $205bn+ [4] | | Midlands | VC investment rising despite national drop; potential growth area for creative startups | Contrasts with national downturn Q2 2025[5] | | Other regions | Increasing cross-border M&A interest, targeting growth sectors like gaming and content production | Reflects globalizing strategy of investors [3] |
Overall, venture capital investment in UK creative industries in 2025 is characterized by strategic public-private collaboration to scale companies, a resurgence in media-related M&A with an international outlook, and notable regional divergences with the Midlands standing out positively amid a broader national pullback [1][3][5].
The report, titled 'Growth finance for the creative industries', was published by the Creative PEC State of the Nations Research Series in 2024. The report, authored by Dr Josh Siepel from the University of Sussex and the Creative PEC, Dr Sawan Rathi, and Marc Cowling from the University of Sussex and Oxford Brookes University, respectively, delves into various aspects of the creative industries, such as foreign direct investment, place-based approaches to supporting culture, and the important role of higher education in the arts and culture sectors.
The report's findings and data should be cited as Siepel, S, Rathi, S, and Cowling, M (2024) 'Growth finance for the creative industries', Creative PEC State of the Nations Research Series. United Kingdom: Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre (Creative PEC). DOI: 10.5281/Zenodo.13889750.
[1] British Business Bank (2025) Scaleup Report. [2] Advertising Association (2025) Advertising Expenditure Report Q1 2025. [3] Dealroom (2025) Venture Capital in the UK: Q1 2025 Review. [4] Tech Nation (2025) UK Tech Nation Report 2025. [5] Beauhurst (2025) UK Venture Capital Investment Report Q2 2025.
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