If you want to attract sound capital investment you need to make sure your business is investment-ready. You also need to understand how investors operate, because this will help you to find financial backers that are right for your business. There are two main types of capital investment:
- private equity finance – where investors provide funding in return for shares in your business that are not listed on the stock exchange
- debt finance from financers who provide capital in return for repayment with interest at a later date – eg banks
Small and medium enterprises and growing businesses in the UK can also access various government sources of finance, such as the Enterprise Finance Guarantee and Enterprise Capital Funds. Selling shares in your company on one of the UK stock markets is another way of raising business capital