Asked by: Gareth Davies (Conservative - Grantham and Bourne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, when (a) he and (b) his Ministers last met with representatives from (a) Octopus Group, (b) Octopus Energy Group, (c) Octopus Ventures and (d) Kraken Technologies.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The British Business Bank first informed officials of its investment into Kraken Technologies on 7 January 2026. This was part of a regular report to the Department on completed transactions. Ministers were notified shortly afterwards.
Discussions prior to 20 January focused on the Secretary of State’s visit to Kraken Technologies, which took place on 19 January. This was his last meeting with Octopus Group companies.
The Minister for Small Business and Economic Transformation met Octopus Group founder Chris Hulatt on 23 October 2025 and founder of Octopus Energy Group Greg Jackson on the 8th January 2026.
Asked by: Gareth Davies (Conservative - Grantham and Bourne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions (a) he and (b) his officials had with the British Business Bank on Kraken Technologies prior to 20 January 2026.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The British Business Bank first informed officials of its investment into Kraken Technologies on 7 January 2026. This was part of a regular report to the Department on completed transactions. Ministers were notified shortly afterwards.
Discussions prior to 20 January focused on the Secretary of State’s visit to Kraken Technologies, which took place on 19 January. This was his last meeting with Octopus Group companies.
The Minister for Small Business and Economic Transformation met Octopus Group founder Chris Hulatt on 23 October 2025 and founder of Octopus Energy Group Greg Jackson on the 8th January 2026.
Asked by: Gareth Davies (Conservative - Grantham and Bourne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what estimate he has made of the level of private capital the British Business Bank expects to crowd-in from their investment in Kraken Technologies.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Department has not sought to make such an estimate, as this is a question that the British Business Bank considers alongside other matters when carrying out due diligence on its investments. The Bank is operationally independent.
The overall ratio of private capital crowded in by the British Business Bank is reported annually in its Impact Report. In 2024/25 the Bank crowded in £3bn of private capital from £1.2bn public finance representing a ratio of 2.5:1 for every pound of public capital invested.