TSP Ventures lands £3m Regional Angels backing for hard-tech seed
The British Business Bank (BBB) committed £3 million to TSP Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm, on 14 October 2026 through its Regional Angels Programme, which lets experienced investors co-invest alongside the bank. The £3 million sits alongside capital from TSP Ventures' own investor base, with Haatch providing the platform.
The practical reading is that this is the third Regional Angels commitment traced for 2026 and the smallest of the three, which may point to the programme spreading across more angel groups rather than concentrating on a few large funds. The list is not necessarily complete.
What TSP Ventures backs and its record
TSP Ventures was founded in 2019 by Chris Smith and Mike Doswell and since then, has backed 17 seed-stage companies in metal recycling, metal-organic frameworks, clean hydrogen, sodium-ion batteries and bio-electrochemical waste treatment. Collectively, the companies have raised over £125 million in follow-on funding and created over 150 UK jobs.
How the Regional Angels Programme and Haatch work
The Regional Angels Programme, which the bank launched in 2019 to improve access to early-stage equity finance, aims to reduce regional imbalances in that access. Haatch runs the programme through its platform, so that experienced investors can invest alongside the bank.
Three Regional Angels commitments in 2026
Odyssey Ventures received £10 million on 23 July 2026, invested alongside its Odyssey Discovery I seed and pre-seed fund for UK founders in AI and deeptech. The bank's £10 million commitment to Fuel Ventures followed on 8 October 2026, and TSP Ventures' £3 million on 14 October 2026.
Together that is £23 million across three groups, with TSP Ventures accounting for about 13 per cent. Two of the three have a stated technology focus, Odyssey Ventures in AI and deeptech and TSP Ventures in hard science. A founder outside those areas should check whether the angel group in front of them has bank-backed money and what it is aimed at.
Questions for founders approaching angel groups
A hard-science founder in energy, food, water or metals now has a clearer route to a syndicate with state backing alongside. Founders outside those areas should certainly ask any angel group they approach, whether bank-backed money is tied to a sector, if via a platform like Haatch, who handles co-investment, and who makes the investment decision.
The bank's backing also shows up in company rounds, such as the Living Optics round.
What will be interesting to watch next is whether further commitments go to other groups and whether TSP Ventures discloses the total size of the fund this money joins.
Key takeaways
BBB committed £3 million to TSP Ventures on 14 October 2026 through its Regional Angels Programme, with Haatch running the platform.
TSP Ventures, founded in 2019, has backed 17 seed-stage companies in hard-tech areas, which the release says have raised over £125 million in follow-on funding.
This is the third Regional Angels commitment traced for 2026, after £10 million to Odyssey Ventures on 23 July and £10 million to Fuel Ventures on 8 October.
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