What can the funds be used for? The PIF sub funds have been established to fill the funding gap; that is to provide
funds for commercially viable propositions which cannot raise the funding they
need, in total or in part, from conventional funders.
What is the first step in requesting funding?
For the equity and mezzanine sub funds please click here to reach the online form to submit details to our fund managers. For the small
and micro loan sub funds there are application forms to complete available on
the downloads page of this website.
What level of investment can the Fund make?
Each sub fund has defined ranges of investment but sub funds can invest jointly
and, subject to certain conditions, each sub fund may be able to invest on more
than one occasion.
How many proposals will be funded each year?
The investment period for the fund runs to the end of December 2008. Propositions
will be assessed for investment on their merits. There is no annual allocation
for investment.
What is the timescale for making decisions?
In the micro loan sub fund, provided the application form is fully completed,
the target is for the approval decision to be made within a week and the funds
to be advanced within a fortnight from there. In the other sub funds as the investments
get larger a greater level of investigation will be undertaken which will require
a longer time period to approval; this will be largely determined by the availability
of information from the applicant but should not be more than a maximum of two
months.
Can PIF make follow on investments?
Yes subject to a maximum level of investment from each sub fund.
Can PIF co-invest or co-finance projects?
Yes, if other funders are prepared to provide part of the funding that a business
needs, PIF can step in to provide the balance.
Is it necessary to create a company to access PIF funds?
Yes for the equity and mezzanine sub funds. The small and micro loan sub funds
can lend to unincorporated businesses.
What other support is available?
An investment aftercare scheme (money with management) runs alongside PIF. This
scheme can provide both interest rate rebates and help towards the cost of a mentor
or non-executive director.
What is due diligence?
Due diligence is the term used to refer to the steps fund managers take to investigate
and verify the information they base the investment decision on and is a continuous
process from initial meeting through to completion of the investment.