Leicester scaleup EarthSense, which specialises in air quality monitoring technology, has secured a loan of more than a quarter-of-a-million pounds from NatWest by leveraging its intellectual property as collateral.
Founded in 2016, EarthSense has grown significantly, boasting a 60% year-on-year growth rate and expanding its team to 26 employees at Space Park, Leicester.
The company provides air quality monitoring solutions to organisations such as local councils, transport companies, and the construction industry, addressing pollution issues at both local and national levels.
NatWest recently became the first UK high street bank to offer intellectual property-backed lending to high growth SMEs. These loans start from £250,000 and can cover up to 50% of the value of a firm’s intellectual property.
Tom Hall, CEO of EarthSense, told Startups Magazine:
“In terms of our business, we see IP as our most important asset. So, when our NatWest Relationship Manager, Andy Edwards, mentioned the new IP-backed loan, we did bite his hand off!”
Neil Bellamy, Head of Technology, Media and Telecoms at NatWest, said:
“As Britain’s biggest bank for startups, at NatWest we see innovative and disruptive businesses like EarthSense pass through our doors every day. We believe in powering up their success, which is why we are the only UK bank to offer a mass-market IP-backed lending proposition for SMEs, starting from amounts as low as £250,000.