The University is implementing a new equity sharing policy for university spinouts. The policy sets the founding equity share in spinout companies at 80% for founder researchers and 20% for the University in nearly all cases. There are some conditions under which the split will be 90% for founder researchers and 10% for the University.
The new equity share aligns with the current average share received by the University: in 2020, both the mean and median figures were 20%.
The policy has been changed in support of the University’s aim to foster innovation and entrepreneurship in order to maximise the global impact of the University’s research and expertise. It provides upfront clarity to researchers and investors about how equity will be shared, and enables the spinout to incentivise founder researchers and attract experienced management teams and investors. It removes the need for case-by-case negotiation which will make spinout formation faster, easier and more transparent.