UK Taxpayers Lose £400 Million on Covid Startup Rescue Fund

UK taxpayers have lost £400 million ($547 million) on a startup investment rescue fund launched by former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak during the pandemic after hundreds of the companies went bust.

The Department for Business and Trade’s annual report to March 2025 revealed that the Future Fund, under which £1.14 billion was put into “innovative companies facing financial difficulties” in 2020 and 2021, was worth £609 million at the end of March.

The British Business Bank, which administers the fund, said the government has collected £128 million in income and sales, lifting the value of the portfolio to £737 ...