EMERGING MANAGER SUMMIT 2026 · BY BRITISH BUSINESS BANK AND EUVC
Hone the craft
of venture.
The first truly practical day designed exclusively for emerging managers.
● Taught by practitioners who’ve done it, from both sides of the table.
30 NOVEMBER 2026 · SOPWELL HOUSE, ST ALBANS
30.11
SOPWELL HOUSE · 2026
WHEN
Monday 30 November 2026
10:00 to dinner
WHERE
Sopwell House, St Albans
20 min from St Pancras
ACCESS
Free
Application-only
WHO
Fund I managers
One or two per firm
THE ROOM
Not another GP/LP connect event.
The venture market is awash with them. This is a day built around learning the craft, where LP access is a by-product rather than the bait.
GPs tell the real stories. LPs explain how they actually decide. Practitioners teach the mechanics. Everyone leaves with tools they’ll use on Tuesday.
● First-time fund managers. Fund I, a few fund II. Not established multi-fund firms.
● Free and application-only. One or two people per firm, so every seat goes to someone who’ll use it.
● LPs come as teachers, never as a fundraising floor.
● Priority places for British Business Bank funds and applicants.
1
DAY, DENSE ON PURPOSE
3
MASTERCLASS TRACKS
21
MASTERCLASSES
12
MONTHS OF EUVC ACADEMY
PRESENTED BY
THE MAIN STAGE · WAR STORIES
Stories,
not slides.
Seasoned GPs telling what actually happened, so you can see what the job really asks of you.
The raise that nearly died
Governance blow-ups and board fights
What a downturn does to a young fund
The decisions they’d make differently at fund I
Twice in the day: after the opening keynote, and straight after lunch.
PROGRAMME
One day.
Three tracks.
Fundraising, Investing and Firm building run in parallel. Before the day you rank the sessions and get a personal plan; every session is recorded, so nothing you miss is missed for good.
Morning 10:00–12:40
10:00
Opening keynote, then War Stories
British Business Bank opens the day · St Alban Suite
11:00
Masterclasses, block one
Two 50-minute sessions per track
12:40
Lunch, LP pitch feedback and Peer Circles
1:1s and expert meetups in the Foyer
Afternoon 14:00–16:00
14:00
War Stories, part two
St Alban Suite
14:30
Masterclasses, block two
Two 45-minute sessions per track
16:00
Break, LP pitch feedback and Peer Circles
Including the Fund Model Peer Circle · 1:1s and expert meetups in the Foyer
Evening 17:00 onwards
17:00
Short masterclasses
Three 30-minute sessions per track
18:30
Reception, then dinner
Where managers become peers · on-site rooms for anyone staying
THE MASTERCLASSES
Every session leaves a tool behind.
A template, a benchmark sheet, a checklist. Speakers will be announced as we get closer to the day.
● Fundraising
How LPs actually think
Five LPs, ten minutes each, the same five questions.
Benchmarking to LP expectations
The numbers LPs hold a fund I to.
Deck & data room
A fund deck isn’t a startup deck.
Fund terms & KPIs
The metrics you’ll be measured on.
How British Business Bank & ECF back first-time managers
The UK’s largest backer of first-time managers, on how to get funded.
Engaging corporate LPs & co-investors
Why corporates behave the way they do.
● Investing
Thesis, edge & sourcing
What makes a thesis investable rather than plausible.
Diligence & IC
A real decision process with no partnership to argue with.
Valuations & benchmarking
How your marks tell a story at fund II.
Exits, secondaries & liquidity
What LPs expect you to say about getting money back.
Venture debt for portfolio companies
Your founders will ask within eighteen months.
Winning the deal
Winning competitive deals with no brand behind you.
● Firm building
Fund design & economics
The decisions that shape the fund for ten years.
Fund modelling & portfolio construction
A fund model built live on screen.
Fund finance
What credit a first fund can realistically get.
LP comms & the AGM
How LPs want a GP to communicate.
Domicile, structuring & LPA essentials
Two decisions that are expensive to get wrong.
The operating stack
Fund admin, banking, tools and back office.
BETWEEN THE SESSIONS, ALL DAY
Not a day of listening. A day of talking back.
Peer Circles
One host, eight managers, one topic. The conversation is the point. Book ahead or walk up.
LP pitch feedback
Three minutes to pitch, three minutes of honest LP feedback, rotate. For hard truths, not for raising.
Expert corners
Legal, banking, fund admin, fund software, fundraising. Genuine 1:1 help all day. No booths.
WHAT YOU GET
Attendees get a one-year EUVC Academy membership.
Worth €2,500, included free with your place.
before
Rank the sessions, so the programme is shaped around what you want.
Book Peer Circles and LP pitch feedback.
Fill in the EUVC Fund Canvas and get a personal session plan.
on the day
Your session plan, and the tools from every masterclass.
A printed LP Trust Report to take home.
The launch of EUVC’s GP Trust Report.
after
12 months of full EUVC Academy access.
Every masterclass recorded, with its templates.
State of Fund I Managers in Europe, built from attendees’ answers.
THE PLACE
A Georgian country house,
20 minutes from St Pancras.
Sopwell House sits in 12 acres of gardens about a mile from St Albans City station. Everything happens on one floor, and there’s an on-site hotel for anyone staying over.
● SOPWELL HOUSE St Albans, Hertfordshire
Your day, on one floor
ground floor · sopwell house
TERRACE · ← WALKING ROUTE BETWEEN EVERY ROOM → · GARDENS
Main stage
WAR STORIES · DINNER
St Alban Suite
Investing
TRACK ROOM
Lord Mountbatten Suite
Firm building
TRACK ROOM
Lady Patricia & Princess Alice
Fundraising
TRACK ROOM
Princess Victoria & Prince Louis
Networking area
Expert corners & 1:1s · LP pitch feedback · Peer Circles · Fund Model Peer Circle
The Foyer · lunch, coffee and the reception
● Fundraising
● Investing
● Firm building
Every track room is a short walk from the main stage.
FAQ
Before you apply
Who should apply?
Partners at emerging managers honing their craft. Established multi-fund firms are not the audience.
Does it cost anything?
No. The day, lunch, the reception and dinner are free for selected managers. Hotel rooms are at your own cost.
How many people per firm?
One or two, so every seat goes to someone who’ll use it.
Can I fundraise on the day?
That’s not what it’s for. LPs come to teach and give feedback. You’ll meet them, but the day is built around learning the craft.
What happens after I’m accepted?
You get a welcome pack and the acceptance questionnaire. It’s mandatory: it’s how you rank sessions and book formats, and not completing it puts your place at risk.
Are British Business Bank funds prioritised?
Yes. British Business Bank funds and applicants get priority places.
FREE · APPLICATION-ONLY · 30 NOVEMBER 2026
Leave on a better trajectory.
Apply in a few minutes. We read every application and confirm places on a rolling basis.
EUVC · THE EMERGING MANAGER SUMMIT
All events · Privacy · Terms