Merseyside Special Investment Fund

MSIF was a unique concept when it was launched in 1996. It was set up in response to the identification that entrepreneurs and businesses across Merseyside were struggling to get the full financial resource they required to start and develop, and that there was a need for an alternative source of funding. MSIF filled that role. Since it was set up, MSIF has received two further funding rounds and is the largest regional fund in the UK.

The organisation was set up to hold the European Regional Development Fund’s (ERDF) contribution to the investment funds as part of the Merseyside Objective One Programme. Objective One is a European Union initiative to help regions throughout the European Union which are under-performing against the EU average improve their economic performance. Private sector investment is from Barclays, the Merseyside Pension Fund and the Cooperative Bank.

MSIF's remit was to create a positive, sustainable impact on the Merseyside economy through encouraging businesses to start and helping them flourish, the creation and preservation of jobs and by attracting private investment to the region. Its success has meant that the model has been replicated in other parts of the UK and across Europe.

The MSIF Group of Funds is managed by Alliance Fund Managers (AFM) which is regulated by the Financial Services Authority in the course of investment business.