• To set out the rationale for introducing innovation loans

• To explain where innovation loans fit in the funding landscape, particularly in relation to grant funding, equity investment and commercial debt

• To highlight the key features of the innovation loans and how these will support innovative SMEs in their growth journey

• To explain the obligations associated with loans, particularly highlighting how they differ from grant funding

• To walk through the ‘customer journey’ that SMEs can expect to experience as innovation loans are delivered through a series of competitions with defined scopes

• To enable businesses to form a judgement (based on whether innovation loans are likely to meet their growth needs and whether they are likely to fit Innovate UK’s selection criteria) about applying for future innovation loan competitions.

Who should attend?

• Senior decision-makers (CEO / CFO / CTO) in innovative SMEs (businesses with fewer than 250 employees / turnover of less than c£50m / balance sheet total of less than c£43m)
• Key intermediaries in professional services firms and the public sector support landscape.

We will also run specific and detailed competition briefing events as each of our planned competitions are launched in the coming months.

Agenda

13:30 Registration

14:00 Introduction to Innovate UK

14:15 Innovation loans in the funding landscape

14:30 Innovation loans key features

15:00 The innovation loan customer journey

15:30 Expected innovation loan pilot programme roll-out

15:45 Q&A

16:30 Networking and close

Venue: Energy Systems Catapult, 10 The Priory Queensway, Birmingham, B4 6BS

Free to attend

If you would like to attend, you can follow this link to register