Access to funding main challenge for Liverpool tech sector

Tech companies in Liverpool are hungry for funding to drive their growth, but access to finances still remains problematical.

New data, released by Tech Climbers in Liverpool City Region, reveals 75% of businesses are looking for funding to grow this year, with almost three quarters on the hunt for Seed or Series A capital.

While 76% of the 58 entrants to Tech Climbers this year have already raised money to date, they cited access to finance as the biggest challenge for the businesses, closely followed by slow adoption of technology.

Last year Liverpool ranked 12th in terms of tech vacancies by city, excluding London, and the latest Tech Climbers data also showcases the influx of jobs in the industry, with all entrants looking to hire over the next 12 months, creating an estimated 297 new jobs – a 13% increase from last year.

Twenty five companies were selected to take a place on this year’s Tech Climbers list with 10 making the ‘ones to watch list’.

The list is judged by the project partners, and looks at investment, impact and innovation.

Entrants submit a snapshot of their data which is also used to chart growth and insight into the businesses and their challenges.

Anna Heyes, CEO at Active Profile, and founder of Tech Climbers, said: “It’s no surprise that the IP-rich tech businesses we engage with through Tech Climbers are naturally looking for funding at various stages of their journey. What is interesting to see is that the numbers are consistent year on year, with healthy figures linked to the ambition to create jobs in the region, too.

“It’s great to see the region responding as new accelerator and various specialist funds come on stream. There’s certainly an emerging market of tech and impressive founders to invest in, so we look forward to seeing more deals in this space over the next 12 months.”

Helen Cross, digital and creative sector lead at Growth Platform – Liverpool City Region Growth Company, said: “Liverpool City Region is well placed to reap rich rewards because of its ever-expanding tech community and the spirit of entrepreneurship and ambition which this year’s Tech Climbers have in abundance.”

“Initiatives such as Tech Climbers are important to not only celebrate the companies doing great work in the region, but also for investors and partners to identify key businesses ripe for investment who can benefit from support such as the AI fund, Baltic Ventures, and, later this year, the Seed Fund. Beyond investment, wrap around support from the likes of Growth Platform’s High Growth Programme and Peer Networks enable businesses to work together and build their networks.”