Taxpayers now have a stake in two Scottish growth companies after the British Business Bank converted loans to equity stakes.

Edinburgh-based agritech business Roslin Technologies and Phlo Technologies the online pharmacy business in Glasgow are among 53 added to the bank’s Future Fund, taking the total to 515 as at the end of December 2022.

The Future Fund, launched in May 2020, has supported UK companies that typically rely on equity investment to fund their growth.

The convertible loans are designed to convert into equity at the next equity funding round, converting at a discount to the price per share agreed between companies and investors in the funding round.

By creating a bridge to the next equity funding round, the Future Fund supported these companies through a period of considerable economic disruption and now the recovery.

The British Business Bank is the UK government’s economic development bank.

Ken Cooper, managing director of venture solutions at the British Business Bank, said: “The Future Fund was created to ensure a flow of capital, at the height of the pandemic, to companies that would otherwise have been unable to access government support schemes.

“We are pleased to see so many of those companies now going on to raise further private sector capital, which will allow the Future Fund to benefit from their continued growth.”