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Company type | State-owned investment and development bank (Statutory corporation) |
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Industry | Financial services |
Founded | November 2020 |
Headquarters | Edinburgh, Scotland |
Key people | Al Denholm, Chief Executive Willie Watt, Chairman |
Owner | Scottish Government |
Website | www |
The Scottish National Investment Bank is a Scottish state-owned investment and national development bank based in Edinburgh, Scotland. [1] Although referred to as a bank, it does not do normal banking operations nor accepts deposits. The bank uses public money to fund commercial projects across Scotland with the hope that this seed capital will encourage further private investment, to help develop a fairer, more sustainable economy. £2 billion of taxpayers money is earmarked for the bank. [2]
The bank is a public corporation, [3] [4] with the only shareholder being the Scottish Government. [5] It reports to the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy. [6]
The bank was announced in September 2017 in the First Minister Nicola Sturgeon's 2017 Programme for Government.
Benny Higgins was appointed as a strategic adviser, to oversee the organisation launching. [7] In February 2018 an implementation plan was launched. [8]
Scottish National Investment Bank Act 2020 | |
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Act of the Scottish Parliament | |
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Long title | An Act of the Scottish Parliament to require the establishment of the Scottish National Investment Bank and to make further provision in connection with that body. |
Citation | 2020 asp 3 |
Introduced by | Derek Mackay MSP |
Territorial extent | Scotland |
Dates | |
Royal assent | 25 February 2020 |
Commencement | 16 September 2020 [9] |
Status: Current legislation | |
Text of statute as originally enacted | |
Text of the Scottish National Investment Bank as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk. |
The bill was introduced by Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Derek Mackay MSP. [10] The Scottish National Investment Bank Act 2020 was passed by Parliament received royal assent in February 2020. [11] The act legally obliged Scottish Ministers to establish a National Investment Bank for Scotland as both a public body as a publicly limited company, independent of the Scottish Government. [12] The act states that "primary goal is to help Scotland transition to net-zero carbon emissions, while supporting small and medium-size enterprises." [13] The bank was formally launched in November 2020. [10] [14]
In February 2022 Eilidh MacTaggart left the bank as Chief Executive. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon was questioned about the departure in the Scottish Parliament. [15] The departure coincided with the publication of the Scottish Government's National Strategy for Economic Transformation which would direct the focus of future investments made by the bank. [16] Ms MacTaggart subsequently insisted she left the bank for personal reasons, [17] and received £117,500 having to work her notice period under the terms of her contract. [18] In April 2023, Al Denholm was appointed Chief Executive. [19]
As of May 2025, the bank had committed £712.7 million in investments. [20]
Date | Company | Sector | Value (GBP) | References |
---|---|---|---|---|
23 November 2020 | M Squared Lasers | Quantum technology | 12,500,000 | [21] |
24 February 2021 | PfP Capital | Mid-market rental housing | 40,000,000 | [22] |
27 July 2021 | R3 IoT | IoT satellite connectivity | 1,000,000 | [23] |
29 July 2021 | Forev | EV charging infrastructure | 2,000,000 | [24] |
11 August 2021 | IndiNature | Natural fibre insulation | 3,000,000 | [25] |
17 August 2021 | Gresham House Forestry Fund | Woodland creation | 50,000,000 | [26] |
7 September 2021 | Nova Innovation | Net zero | 6,400,000 | [27] |
22 September 2021 | Sunamp | Net zero | 6,000,000 | [28] |
15 November 2021 | Iona Wind Partnership | Net zero | 13,000,000 | [29] |
03 December 2021 | Strathcarron Homes | Housing | 3,000,000 | [30] |
07 January 2022 | Lothian Broadband Group | Rural broadband | 20,000,000 | [31] |
18 January 2022 | Highland Coast Hotels | Tourism | 4,450,000 | [32] |
28 January 2022 | Aberdeen Harbour | Marine infrastructure | 30,000,000 | [33] |
31 March 2022 | Travelnest | Tourism | 3,000,000 | [34] |
9 May 2022 | Circularity Scotland | Deposit-return scheme | 9,000,000 | [35] |
9 May 2022 | Elasmogen | Pharmaceutical industry | 3,500,000 | [36] |
4 July 2022 | Orbital Marine Power | Renewable energy | 4,000,000 | [37] |
13 July 2022 | pureLiFi | Telecommunications | 10,000,000 | [38] |
18 July 2022 | Wavegarden Scotland | Surf technology | 26,000,000 | [39] |
5 September 2022 | Trojan Energy | EV charging infrastructure | 9,000,000 | [40] |
October 2022 | Orbex | Bio-fuel satellite launch | 17,800,000 | [41] |
November 2022 | Social and Sustainable | Social housing | 15,000,000 | [42] |
December 2022 | North Start Renewables | Renewable energy operations | 50,000,000 | [43] |
January 2023 | PneumoWave | Biosensor technology | 5,200,000 | [44] |
March 2023 | Utopi | Data analytics platform | 5,000,000 | [45] |
April 2023 | Forrit | Cloud-based content | 5,000,000 | [46] |
April 2023 | Verlume | Renewable energy | 6,600,000 | [47] |
October 2023 | Cyacomb | Innovative technology | 2,600,000 | [48] |
October 2023 | Par Equity | Innovative technology | 6,600,000 | [49] |
January 2024 | Cumulus Oncology | Cancer treatment | 9,000,000 | [50] |
January 2024 | Trojan Energy | On-street EV charging infrastructure | 18,000,000 | [51] |
January 2024 | Aurora Energy Services | Training relating to green energy supply chain | 20,000,000 | [52] |
April 2024 | Calcivis | Dental decay detection | 4,000,000 | [53] |
April 2024 | EnteroBiotix | Biopharmaceuticals | 6,000,000 | [54] |
June 2024 | FOR EV | EV charging infrastructure | 10,000,000 | [55] |
June 2024 | iGii | Nanomaterial | 4,000,000 | [56] |
August 2024 | Highland Broadband | Broadband network | 10,000,000 | [57] |
September 2024 | ZeroAvia | Aircraft engines | 20,000,000 | [58] |
September 2024 | Leap Automation (Leap AI) | Artificial intelligence robotics | 7,900,000 | [59] |
November 2024 | DITT Construction | Housing | 730,000 | [60] |
February 2025 | Pulpex | Packaging technology | 10,000,000 | [61] |
February 2025 | Subsea Micropiles | Marine anchor system for large offshore construction projects | 6,700,000 | [62] |
April 2025 | NCIMB | Microbiology services | [63] |