Illuminate Financial and Barclays expand strategic partnership to back fintech startups
Illuminate Financial, the London-based venture capital firm investing in financial services technology companies, today announced an expansion of its longstanding partnership with Barclays, under which the bank will become a limited partner in Illuminate Financial’s latest venture capital strategy.
Barclays joins global financial institutions including Jefferies, J.P. Morgan, Deutsche Börse Group, Citi, and S&P Global as an investor in Illuminate Financial which backs early-stage fintech and enterprise software companies driving innovation in the financial services industry.
Barclays was an investor in Illuminate Financial’s previous $100m fintech fund which was a 2019 vintage.
Andy Challis, co-head of Principal Investments at Barclays, said: “We’re delighted to continue our longstanding partnership with Illuminate Financial. This investment will enable Barclays to play an even more meaningful role in the financial market’s innovation ecosystem.”
Illuminate Financial is led by Mark Beeston, founder and managing partner, alongside partners Alexander Ross and Rezso Szabo. The venture firm was founded in 2014 and to date has invested in more than 30 late-Seed to Series A companies addressing core challenges across financial services including digital assets infrastructure, climate and ESG, data and private markets, as well as broader enterprise solutions that target the sector.
Mark Beeston, founder and managing partner at Illuminate Financial, commented: “It has been our privilege to work with Barclays for several years and welcome them back as an investor for the second time in our venture capital strategy. Illuminate Financial’s investors represent a unique combination of global financial institutions, extending the firm’s deep domain expertise and go-to-market value-add for our portfolio.”
