'I needed investment to grow my business, and NatWest was a huge part of that process' - celebrating ten years of the NatWest Accelerator with launch of new funding competition

Since 2015, NatWest has been a beacon of support for budding entrepreneurs, supporting them to run and grow their businesses through its free Accelerator.

As the scheme marks its decade-long journey, NatWest is commemorating this milestone with the introduction of NatWest Accelerator Pitch, a competition with a £1 million prize pool designed to provide small business owners and entrepreneurs with an opportunity to win funding to drive their growth.

In the next stage of its expansion, NatWest is also looking to partner with up to 10 UK universities to open new business accelerators in the next three years. This investment in the bank's programme intends to offer 10,000 entrepreneurs the chance to join its Accelerator community in 2025.

Speaking about the launch of the competition as well as the Accelerator’s commitment to supporting businesses and the wider economy, Robert Begbie, CEO of NatWest's commercial and institutional franchise, said: "It's a testament to how much the Accelerator has achieved that we are setting out plans for its expansion – starting with our ambition of supporting up to 10,000 entrepreneurs in 2025.

"We are ambitious for the UK and believe that by unlocking the potential of entrepreneurs, we can support sustained economic growth. The next stage of the Accelerator's expansion will involve partnering with more UK universities, combining our strengths to help entrepreneurs commercialise their ideas, and kickstart economic growth.

"As we celebrate the milestone of the Accelerator's tenth anniversary, we are excited to launch NatWest Accelerator Pitch, a new £1 million pitching competition offering small businesses the opportunity to win a share of the funding to fuel their growth.

"We'd encourage any