The benefit’s mutual
At NBS Ventures, we look for inspirational teams who are developing impressive solutions that can help Nationwide to accelerate its strategy and prepare us for the future, to benefit our members, and society as whole.
Our focus
We don’t have a strict set of rules for investment, but we do focus on the following:
Strategic alignment
Our partnerships should accelerate Nationwide’s strategic delivery through the deployment of solutions that solve today’s challenges, or prepare us for the challenges we might face in the future.
Mutual benefit
We like to forge mutually beneficial relationships with our portfolio companies. We invest to enable collaboration and the creation of partnerships that accelerate the strategy of Nationwide, but also the strategy of our portfolio companies. We hope to provide you with experience and insight via board observer positions.
Relevant domains
We invest in companies that align with domains relevant to Nationwide today, or in the future. Examples of typical sectors include fintech, data, cyber security, regtech, proptech and marketing tech, but we’re always on the look-out across all areas.
Early stage
We invest predominantly in companies between Seed and Series B stage, although we are flexible if the solution is right.
UK focused
Since Nationwide is based in the UK, we’re naturally UK focused, although we are still open to global opportunities if they can benefit Nationwide.
Value alignment
Nationwide strive to have a meaningful impact on our customer’s lives, whether that’s through propositions that better meet their needs, the experiences we create, or the way we serve them. It also means playing an active part in communities and being a good global citizen so that we have a positive impact in broader society. We want to work with companies that share our values around becoming a beacon for mutual good.
We achieve more together
Nationwide Building Society is a mutual organisation, which means we’re not owned by shareholders, but by our customers - we call them our members. We don’t just believe in the power of the collective. We embody it. We are a community of 16 million members and it’s why we invest in start-ups. We invest early and for the long term, supporting great companies, then doing things together that neither of us could alone.
Portfolio
10x
10x develop next-gen, cloud-native core banking infrastructure. Enabling timely, relevant and personalised customer experiences.
Hazy
Hazy generates synthetic data that you can drop straight into your existing workflow to improve your fraud detection and risk models.
Moneyhub
Moneyhub allows users to take control of their financial situation, access all their data in one place and improve their financial wellbeing.
Scaled Insight
Scaled Insight are applying human and behavioural insight deployed through artificial intelligence to Financial Services, Insurance and Health sectors
Ordo
Ordo is building an ecosystem to allow billers to issue requests for payment, and payers to respond, paying directly from their bank account.
Bunk
Bunk is a digital lettings agency using the latest technology, including Open Banking, to help improve the rental market for both landlords and renters.
Form3
Form3 allow customers to access multiple payment schemes and move money with their cloud-native, real-time technology.
Bankifi
BankiFi enables banks to offer their business customers a suite of additional accounting services, through one API.
Switchd
Switchd saves you money by checking energy tariffs every day and automatically switching you when there’s a better deal.
MakeMyHouseGreen
MakeMyHouseGreen has the mission of empowering consumers to understand which are the right green home solutions for them.
Coadjute
Coadjute is an open ecosystem of solutions for the property market, built to speed up transactions, reduce fall-throughs, and improve transparency.
Venture X
Due to the nature of the Cyber Security environment they operate in and to protect the company, we unfortunately can't name our investment.
Aveni
Aveni's AI assistants collect the relevant information to help drive automation and improvements across multiple areas of businesses for the financial services industry.
Meet the team
Samuel White
Head of Ventures
Samuel has 15 years M&A and Venture Capital experience – being involved in more than 300 transactions with enterprise values of up to £500m. He leads the NBS Ventures investment activity, is a father to his two young children, and has founded several start-ups of his own. Samuel likes to solve complex challenges and is passionate about doing things that make a difference.
Sarah Lim
Venture Associate
Sarah spent six years in commercial roles at various start-ups in industries ranging from sustainability to robotics. She has experience in sales, marketing, product development and operations. She enjoys supporting early-stage companies by helping to accelerate their growth and navigating the complexities of early-stage fundraising and investment.
Nick Kirton
Head of Legal - M&A
Nick supports NBS Ventures activity to mitigate legal risk. Nick has a strong corporate law background for companies like EDF Energy, Virgin Atlantic and has been at Nationwide for 8 years. He provides invaluable, practical and commercially-minded advice to NBS Ventures. He’d never mention it, but Nick was Nationwide Employee of the year in 2020.
Get in touch
Nationwide Building Society,
Nationwide House,
Pipers Way,
Swindon
SN38 1NW