Between 2009 and<\/span> 2019 in the U.K., just 30 Black people received VC funding, equating to less than 0.4% of all funds allocated to founders. Though the latest figures haven\u2019t been released, it\u2019s safe to say that plenty of work needs to be done to ensure that more people receive funding.<\/p>\n

One way to do this would be to launch more funds that specialize in backing diverse founders. There is an increasing number of funds saying they are dedicated toward backing diverse founders, and around five are known to be dedicated specifically to Black founders.<\/p>\n

While funds targeting members of the Black community won\u2019t fix systematic and cultural discrimination, there\u2019s certainly no harm in having more. More Black funds, for example, could help support more businesses otherwise overlooked. This, in turn, would increase the possibility of a Black unicorn and may spawn new sectors and create new jobs. Smaller VCs also tend to offer more than just money, such as money and a dependable ecosystem, which could prove essential for many founders.<\/p>\n

There is a growing desire for more funds and resources in the UK targeting Black founders, according to several that we spoke with. But angel investor Andy Ayim points out that there are two major roadblocks to this: For one, Black people make up just 4% of the U.K. population, compared to 14% in the U.S.<\/p>\n