Aviva Investors makes dual VC investments with Oxford Science Enterprises & Alloyed
Aviva Investors, the global asset management business of Aviva, announces it has completed a £15 million investment with Oxford Science Enterprises, an independent billion-pound investment company that finds, funds, and builds transformational science and technology companies – across life sciences, healthtech, and deeptech –from Oxford’s world-leading research.
Alongside its investment with OSE, Aviva Investors has also invested more than £6.6 million directly in Alloyed, one of OSE’s portfolio companies, as part of its oversubscribed Series B fundraising. Alloyed specialises in designing and manufacturing advanced alloys, delivering high performance metallic components and platforms.
OSE is dedicated to transforming scientific research into global innovations through a unique partnership with the University of Oxford. Since its inception in 2015, OSE has raised over £850 million and collaborated with more than 300 international investors, collectively deploying over £2.5 billion into more than 100 university spin-out companies, boosting capital flows and accelerating the commercialisation of breakthrough science from Oxford.
The investment has been made through Aviva Investors’ recently launched Venture & Growth Capital LTAF (‘Long Term Asset Fund’, the ‘Fund’), which aims to give UK defined contribution and wealth markets better access to innovative UK growth companies. It is the second investment announced by the Fund following a £15 million investment with Cambridge Innovation Capital (‘CIC’), a venture capital firm specialising in early-stage life sciences and deep tech companies in Cambridge.
Ben Luckett, Managing Director, Venture and Strategic Capital, at Aviva Investors, said: “Our strategic partnership with OSE is a further example of our investment philosophy and commitment to support innovative high-growth science and technology companies in the Oxford-Cambridge growth corridor that are helping the UK get ready for the future. This investment in Alloyed highlights the value of forming these partnerships with university-affiliated funds and how they can provide direct access to attractive and IP-rich university spin-outs at the growth stage. For investors prepared to commit long-term capital as these companies scale up, these partnerships are crucial to maximising the potential for investment returns and our ability to deliver strong outcomes to our clients and, ultimately, savers.”
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