On Friday (24 April 2026), the live finals for the first ever Royal Bank of Scotland Pitch competition were held at the official opening of their new Accelerator hub building on Princes Street, Edinburgh.
The high-energy competition saw six finalists compete in front of a live audience for a £30,000 cash prize. The startups were expected to make a quickfire sell of their businesses and set out why they deserved to win.
Pounce Padel, a business specialising in manufacturing high performance padel rackets for women won the top awards of £15,000, while Medical Ascend, a medical training platform provider, won the second prize of £10,000 and Gloriah, a start up with expertise in producing hormonal health products, won the third prize of £5,000. Pounce Padel and Sabliere, a non-alcoholic drinks producer, will also receive an out of home promotional campaign delivered by JC Decaux UK to market their business.
The competition, the first of its kind in Scotland, was held at the official opening Royal Bank of Scotland’s new Edinburgh Accelerator Hub. The new building doubles the capacity of the Bank to offer physical working and meeting space in the heart of Scotland’s capital to startups free of charge. The Scottish Accelerator programme is also celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, having been set up in 2016.
The launch was held on the same day that the Royal Bank of Scotland and University of Edinburgh announced their new partnership, sharing expertise and resources to support spinouts. The alliance brings together Scotland’s largest bank for business and one of its largest universities to support the innovation economy.
The Royal Bank Accelerator programme opens up the Bank’s expertise and spaces to Scotland’s entrepreneurs and innovators, free of charge. Through hubs in Glasgow and Edinburgh and its mobile app, the Bank is supporting a community of startups across Scotland. In February, the Royal Bank of Scotland announced its target to support 5,000 entrepreneurs this year, a ten-fold increase on 2025.
Georgie Rennie, Pounce Padel Founder, said “It was an exhilarating and fun experience to take part in Scotland’s first ever Pitch competition. I would like to thank Royal Bank of Scotland for all the support that they have given me through the Accelerator programme.
“Our win in the Pitch competition gives Pounce Padel a great platform from which to grow and expand. Startup businesses rely on exposure and promotion just as much as funding and the Royal Bank Pitch is a great way to deliver this.”
Darren Pirie, Head of Accelerator, Royal Bank of Scotland said: “Our first Royal Bank Accelerator Pitch competition was a great showcase of the dynamism and ingenuity of Scotland’s startup community. It takes real grit, courage and conviction to pitch your business in a tight timeframe in front of a live audience. I would like to thank all of the finalists for a great showing and to congratulate our winner Pounce Padel who absolutely smashed their pitch.
“With our new partnership with Edinburgh University and the opening of our new hub building on Princes Street, our Royal Bank Accelerator community is going from strength to strength. We welcome anyone, anywhere with the drive to start up and grow their own business.”
To join the UK’s largest community of entrepreneurs, download the Royal Bank/NatWest Accelerator app here.
Notes to editors
About the Royal Bank of Scotland
For almost 300 years, the Royal Bank has been growing Scotland together with customers. The Royal Bank of Scotland, part of the NatWest Group, is focused on succeeding with its customers from opening student accounts, to buying their first home, setting up a business, and saving for retirement. As Scotland’s biggest bank for business, we offer businesses specialist sector knowledge in a wide range of areas, as well as access to expert entrepreneurial support.
