Upside #40 - Pension Cash *Will* Unlock UK VC - But when, how & so what?

🎙️ Upside #40 Podcast — For The Real Stories Behind The European Venture Headlines

If you're into startups, VC investing, European Venture, or anything startup-ecosystem and business - this podcast is for you.

Host: Dan Bowyer (SuperSeed)
Guests: Lomax (Outsized), Mads (SuperSeed), Chris Elphick (BVCA)

00:00 — Introduction
Dan welcomes listeners to Upside, introducing co-hosts Lomax and Mads. Special guest Chris Elphick, Head of Venture Capital at the British Venture Capital Association (BVCA), joins to unpack the European venture scene.

🏛️ BVCA, Government, and the Venture Landscape

00:41 — Chris Elphick: Inside the BVCA
Chris shares BVCA’s role as the voice of UK VC, its upcoming conference, and engagement with government and industry leaders like Peter Kyle (UK Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology).

01:30 — AI, MPs, and Government Tools
Discussion on the use of AI in government, freedom of information requests, and whether MPs should be criticised or encouraged for experimenting with tools like ChatGPT.

⚙️ Politics, Elections & Economic Backdrop

05:00 — UK Local Elections & Reform’s Rise
Chris and the team unpack local election results, the rise of Reform UK, and parallels with Trump-era political trends.

06:50 — US-China Trade War & Global Impact
Mads breaks down the effect of US-China tariffs on global trade, the likelihood of recession, and inflationary pressures.

✈️ Aerospace & European Tech Ecosystem

10:00 — Heart Aerospace Moves to the US
The team explores why Swedish startup Heart Aerospace is relocating to LA,  touching on the US-Europe funding gap and the challenges of raising large growth rounds in Europe.

13:00 — UK VC Fundraising Trends
Chris shares new BVCA data: venture fundraising doubled from £2.3B (2023) to £4B (2024), with notable increases in US LP participation, but highlights the persistent absence of UK pension capital.

💰 Pension Reform & the Scale-Up Gap

25:00 — EIS, VCT, & British Business Bank Programmes
Explaining the importance of Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS), Venture Capital Trusts (VCT), and the British Business Bank in seeding UK funds.

35:00 — Mansion House Compact & Pensions
Deep dive into the push to unlock UK pension capital for VC:

• Charge cap changes
• LTAFs (Long-Term Asset Funds) are here
• The Nova initiative (inspired by France’s Tibi scheme)
• Challenges: fees, liquidity, education, performance

🌍 European Comparisons

56:00 — Who’s Doing Pension Release Well?
Discussion of successful pension-backed VC models in Sweden, the Netherlands, France (Tibi), and lessons for the UK.

🤖 AI Corner & Deal of the Week

58:00 — AI: Changing the Game
Mads highlights that ~30% of Microsoft and Google code is now AI-generated; Cursor hits 1B lines/day.

59:00 — Defence & Geopolitics
Lomax points to a Series A defence deal led by Index Ventures. Mads reviews the U.S.-Ukraine minerals deal as geopolitical chess.