Resolution Ventures: 10 Key Things You Must Know

Overview

Resolution Ventures is a prominent venture capital and social investment firm with a dual focus: backing early-stage entrepreneurs in Southeast Asia’s fintech space and supporting technology innovations that improve work and livelihoods in the UK. Notably, Resolution Ventures operates two distinct, impactful investment approaches. In Southeast Asia, it concentrates on financial inclusion through fintech startups addressing critical infrastructure challenges. In the UK, through affiliations with the Resolution Foundation, it drives social investment with a particular emphasis on low-paid and precarious work, notably via its WorkerTech fund. Readers will discover how Resolution Ventures combines financial acumen with social mission, bridging innovation with inclusive, sustainable growth.

1. Dual Market Focus: Southeast Asia and the United Kingdom

Resolution Ventures operates primarily in two geographical and thematic spheres. In Southeast Asia, it invests in early-stage fintech companies, leveraging the region’s demographic dividends, growing internet penetration, and expanding e-commerce sector to promote financial inclusion. Concurrently, through its connection with the Resolution Foundation in the UK, it fosters social innovation in labor markets by backing startups that improve working conditions and employment prospects for low-to-middle income workers. This bifocal strategy highlights Resolution Ventures’ commitment both to scalable commercial growth and social impact.

2. Fintech Investment in Southeast Asia

The fund’s Southeast Asia portfolio is sharply focused on fintech startups from seed to Series A stages. It prioritizes ventures solving immediate problems around financial infrastructure and access, aiming to empower underserved communities. Southeast Asia’s progressive regulation frameworks, burgeoning talent pools, and increasing digitalization create fertile ground for such companies. Resolution Ventures supports founders with international ambitions, helping scale technologies that enhance financial inclusion and can be exported globally.

3. Social Investment and WorkerTech in the UK

In the UK, Resolution Ventures is best known for launching the WorkerTech fund, which targets technology startups dedicated to improving the lives of UK workers in low-paid or precarious jobs. This fund combines venture capital rigor with social objectives, supporting innovations that bring transparency to pay, facilitate fair work practices, and aid career progression. It builds on the Resolution Foundation’s analytical insights, bridging data-driven research with real-world solutions that benefit workers at scale.

4. Origins and Relationship with the Resolution Foundation

Resolution Ventures emerged from the Resolution Foundation, a leading UK think tank focused on improving prospects for low-to-middle income British workers. The Foundation initially piloted WorkerTech social investment programs in 2017, and after demonstrated success, integrated these efforts to create Resolution Ventures. This evolution reflects a strategic aim to complement policy and analytical work with actionable investment, using capital to drive social innovation alongside traditional research.

5. The WorkerTech Partnership and Fund

The WorkerTech Partnership is a three-year program and a flagship initiative under Resolution Ventures, backed by philanthropic and public sector organizations such as the Joseph Rowntree Foundation and Accenture. It supports early-stage ventures offering technology-driven solutions to labor market challenges, such as pay transparency and workplace justice. The larger WorkerTech fund, recently closed with £6.75 million towards a £9 million goal, exemplifies this commitment, channeling capital into ventures helping over 2 million workers and advancing positive impact in sectors defined by low pay and job insecurity.

6. Experienced Leadership and Investment Team

Resolution Ventures’ team includes professionals with extensive backgrounds in private equity, hedge funds, and venture capital, particularly with expertise in Asian markets. Managing Partner Sam Gibb, for example, brings deep experience managing sector-agnostic early-stage funds in Southeast Asia and conducting Asian equity analysis. This blend of financial expertise and strategic insight enables the firm to select and nurture high-potential startups that align with their commercial and social objectives.

7. Portfolio and Impact Highlights

The portfolio companies under Resolution Ventures mark a diverse spectrum of innovative startups. In Southeast Asia, many fintech ventures address core financial infrastructure gaps and inclusion. In the UK, investments include companies that increase skills-based hiring, improve gig economy transparency, and support worker-friendly innovations in care, trades, and beyond. The impact extends to tangible outcomes such as helping thousands of workers achieve greater pay transparency and job security, signifying successful social venture investing.

8. Strategic Role in Skills-Based Hiring Transformation

Resolution Ventures supports cutting-edge technology tackling outdated hiring practices in the UK. Investments in firms like Clu help employers shift from traditional criteria like degrees and job titles to skills-based assessment models. This shift is crucial given evolving workforce demands and rising emphasis on demonstrated competencies rather than formal credentials. These innovations improve inclusion and enable better job matching, benefiting marginalized groups and facilitating more effective workforce development.

9. Addressing Labor Market Challenges with Technology

The UK labor market faces significant shifts, with rising unemployment rates, pay growth moderation, and increasing demand for flexible working solutions. Resolution Ventures positions itself at the forefront of this transformation by backing startups that develop tools for workforce retention, disability and carer support, occupational health, and fair pay. This approach is essential to mitigate challenges in low-pay sectors while promoting sustainable economic participation.

10. Future Prospects and Vision

Looking ahead, Resolution Ventures aims to expand its financial and social investment portfolios while driving innovation that addresses systemic barriers in labor markets and financial services. The firm’s ambition includes scaling funded startups internationally and deepening the WorkerTech ecosystem. Its continued collaboration with philanthropic entities, governments, and industry players positions Resolution Ventures as a key player in shaping inclusive, technology-enabled economic futures both in Southeast Asia and the UK.

Conclusion

Resolution Ventures stands out as a versatile and socially conscious investment firm, uniquely blending commercial venture capital expertise with a strong social mission. By investing in fintech startups in Southeast Asia and supporting transformative WorkerTech innovations in the UK, it is impacting financial inclusion and labor market equity on multiple fronts. Its experience-driven team, strategic partnerships, and cutting-edge portfolio demonstrate the power of hybrid investment models. As technology continues to reshape work and finance, Resolution Ventures exemplifies how targeted capital can foster inclusive growth and social progress. Will its model inspire more investors to meld profit and purpose in the years ahead?