Growthdeck
Growthdeck is a UK venture capital platform, now operating as Your VC, that lets individual investors back tax-efficient, SEIS and EIS-qualifying British startups. It is a generalist platform where water is the exception: its sole tracked water investment is Industrial Phycology, an algae-based wastewater treatment company. As of 2026 it has backed a single water company across two funding rounds.
Compiled by Antoine Walter, (don't) Waste Water, from official filings and direct intelligence in Leviathan.
The take
Growthdeck spent the better part of a decade as a UK tax-relief investment platform before water ever entered its portfolio. Founded in 2015 and now operating under the name Your VC, its pitch is straightforward: let individual investors back fully vetted British startups and collect the generous relief the UK offers through its SEIS and EIS schemes, two government programmes that refund part of what you put into a young company.
Growthdeck is a generalist, and that matters for reading this page. Across its history it has put more than GBP 50 million into 30-plus UK companies spanning B2B software, consumer brands and deep tech. Water shows up exactly once, in Industrial Phycology, a company that grows microalgae to strip phosphorus, ammonia and stubborn micro-pollutants out of sewage, with its kit now running at Severn Trent and South West Water sites.
In my Leviathan database Growthdeck shows the lightest possible water footprint: a single water company across two funding rounds, which is why the (don't) Waste Water water-commitment score files it as a One-Off. For a tax-led platform whose investors choose their own deals, a wastewater company is one option on the menu rather than the mission.
Growthdeck enters its next chapter under new management. As of August 2025 it named Frederick Hamilton, its former head of investment, as chief executive and brought in Kieron Launder, ex-Rothschild and Schroders, as chairman, before adopting the Your VC brand. Whether that new team writes a second water cheque, or leaves Industrial Phycology as a one-off, is the open question worth watching.
Water Commitment Score
Compiled from official filings, third-party records, and direct intelligence from investors and founders, in Leviathan · recomputed monthly · as of Jun 2026.
Portfolio · 1 water companies
Frequently asked
- Is Growthdeck the same as Your VC?
- Yes. Growthdeck rebranded to Your VC after appointing a new chief executive and chairman in 2025. It is the same FCA-regulated UK firm, Your VC Partners LLP, running the same tax-efficient SEIS and EIS investment platform; only the brand name and website (yourvc.co.uk) have changed.
- What does Growthdeck invest in?
- Growthdeck invests in early-stage UK companies that qualify for SEIS and EIS tax relief, spanning B2B software, consumer and deep-tech sectors. It is a generalist platform rather than a water fund; its single tracked water investment is Industrial Phycology, an algae-based wastewater treatment company.
- Who runs Growthdeck?
- Growthdeck is led by chief executive Frederick Hamilton, its former head of investment, who was appointed CEO in August 2025. Kieron Launder, formerly of Rothschild and Schroders, chairs the board. Co-founders Simon Emary, the CFO and Head of Portfolio, and James Wrighton are also on the team.
- Has Growthdeck invested in water?
- Growthdeck has backed one water company, Industrial Phycology, a UK firm that uses microalgae to remove phosphorus, ammonia and micro-pollutants from wastewater. Its technology is deployed by utilities including Severn Trent and South West Water. That single deal earns Growthdeck a One-Off water-commitment rating from (don't) Waste Water.
- Where is Growthdeck based?
- Growthdeck is based in London, at 90 High Holborn, having grown from earlier roots in Milton Keynes. Founded in 2015, the firm says it has invested over GBP 50 million across more than 30 UK businesses, with four exits, now under its Your VC brand.