Scottish EDGE

Funds Scottish EDGE, Scotland's largest competition for early-stage high-growth businesses and startup development.

Scottish EDGE is a Community Interest Company and Scotland's largest funding competition for early-stage, high-growth businesses. Since 2013 it has distributed more than £29 million across 712 awards, and it is backed by the Hunter Foundation, Royal Bank of Scotland, the Scottish Government, Scottish Enterprise, and private donors.

The competition is organised around four main tracks: Scottish EDGE, Young EDGE, Wild Card EDGE, and Social Enterprise EDGE. The main track can provide up to £100,000 on a split grant-and-loan basis, Young EDGE and Wild Card EDGE offer grant-only awards up to £15,000, and Round 27 carried a total prize pool of £1.5 million. Applications are handled through a single annual cycle, with an online portal and a short video pitch required.

Scottish EDGE stands out because it pairs cash with mentoring, training, and access to professional services. Winners gain support from partner firms across legal, accounting, insurance, and intellectual property, and the judging criteria look at value proposition, team, impact, customer focus, growth, and use of funds. It suits founders who can show early traction and make a disciplined case for why the award will unlock scale.