Earlier this month, the British Business Bank shared results from a survey of so-called ‘business angels’ – a loosely defined group comprising individual investors willing to take early-stage stakes in private companies. The cohort is a big focus for the state-backed lender, which aims to boost credit to small and medium firms, and engage with the pools of capital that might help in that effort.
The report bullishly concluded that respondents are “continuing to invest in early-stage businesses and are optimistic about the future despite current economic uncertainty”. Catherine Lewis La Torre, the bank’s chief executive, described the group’s apparent optimism as “encouraging”.
At first glance, headline findings back this up. Some 56 per cent of respondents made an investment between April and June this year, almost half are open to building their portfolio in the remainder of the current financial year, and 72 per cent were reportedly confident of revenue growth over the next 12 months. Given the context of the pandemic, these feel like positive signals.