• Cambridge Venture Index SEIS/EIS Fund 2 launched by ET Capital to widen access to investing in the Cambridge and Oxford start-up ecosystems
• Follows successful close of first fund, which has already backed a number of Cambridge-based, science-focused start-ups, including Reo Tx and Cellestial Health

Cambridge, 16th April 2026: ET Capital, a long-standing investor in high-growth technology businesses, has launched the Cambridge Venture Index SEIS/EIS Fund 2 (CVIF2).  Once raised, the fund will implement ET Capital’s groundbreaking venture index investing approach by backing up to 20 early-stage, science-based companies coming out of the Cambridge and Oxford start-up ecosystems.

The fund marks an expansion of ET Capital’s ambitions to improve access to early-stage venture investing opportunities for sophisticated angel investors. Its first fund, Cambridge Venture Index SEIS/EIS Fund 1 (CVIF1), was raised in 2025 and is being invested in up to ten companies coming out of some of Cambridge’s leading accelerator and deal originator programmes.

Companies that have received investment to date include:

• Reo Tx, which uses advanced technology for a disease with significant unmet medical need.
• Cellestial Health, a preclinical biopharmaceutical company transforming the future of brain disease therapies by targeting previously overlooked causes of neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson’s.

With CVIF2, the firm is offering sophisticated or high net worth investors the opportunity to back exciting, innovative start-ups emerging out of either Cambridge or Oxford’s thriving ecosystems. Combined, the two clusters derive nearly £30 billion of annual economic impact from the research and development activities of the Universities of Cambridge and Oxford or the companies spun out of, or closely associated with, the institutions.¹

ET Capital is committed to helping investors support and, ultimately, benefit from the success of two of Europe’s leading technology clusters. The Cambridge Venture Index funds focus on delivering diversified, risk-limited returns through structured venture investment, a technique based on extensive proprietary research by ET Capital.^² The research analysed the financing history of nearly 200 start-ups in the Cambridge cluster to model the performance of a series of synthetic venture funds from 1992 to 2024. Using the same criteria across all cohorts, five of the six synthetic funds outperformed the FTSE 100 Index.

ET Capital is using this approach as an alternative to a more traditional VC methodology, based on ‘picking winners’. This approach makes it harder to build a diversified, balanced portfolio, and can amplify the volatility of fund performance.

Martin Rigby, managing director of ET Capital, said: “Businesses coming out of Cambridge and Oxford science clusters represent some of the UK’s most ground-breaking deep science and technology start-ups. At the same time, there are sophisticated or high net worth investors that want to back these new companies, but who find it hard to access the breadth of deals. With the second of our venture index funds we aim to give those investors access to a broad range of investments that balance significant potential with a reduction of risk through diversification.”

Struan McDougall, an investor in CVIF1 and managing director of local angel syndicate Cambridge Capital Group, said: “The start-ups coming out of the Cambridge and Oxford ecosystems represent an exciting new wave of scientific innovation, but the opportunities for early-stage investors are often limited to a small part of the market. I am delighted to be investing in CVIF2 as ET Capital expands its innovative approach, offering a way for a wide range of investors to support ventures with significant potential.”

Dr. Nat Hastings, CEO of Cellestial Health, said: “Cambridge ecosystem’s success rests on collaborations and synergies between departments, experts, and companies. Innovative businesses also need appropriate support from investors who have not only capital but also networks, experience, and shared vision to help us evolve. ET Capital’s venture index investing approach brings that as we continue our R&D efforts for the benefit of the patients.”

ET Capital is holding a series of webinars for anyone interested in learning more about participating in CVIF2, starting on 20th April 2026 and running through to the end of June. Further information can be accessed via etcapital.com.