General News

UK’s ESProfiler, a Cybersecurity Startup, Reports £2.8M Seed Round

ESProfiler, the British cybersecurity start-up, announces a £2.8 million Seed round, led by Nauta Capital. This milestone builds on the momentum from angel investments received in 2023. Founded to tackle the inefficiencies in enterprise cybersecurity investments, ESProfiler is emerging as a key player in the… Read More

Real Estate Report: Property Buyers Need to Make Over $106K to Comfortably Afford a Home

Home buyers today need to make more than $106,000 to comfortably afford a home, a new Zillow (NASDAQ: Z and ZG) real estate market analysis finds. That is reportedly 80% more than in January 2020, showing how the math has changed in the real estate… Read More

Sibstar, a Debit Card and Fintech App for Dementia Patients, Acquires £125,000 from Dragon’s Den

Founder of Sibstar, which is a debit card and app for dementia patients and their families to safely manage their funds, has acquired £125,000 from Dragon’s Den investors Sara Davies and Deborah Maiden. The BBC reality series reportedly sees a number of budding entrepreneurs pitch… Read More

UK Businesses Continued Positive Start to 2024 – Report

Businesses continued their positive start to the new year, Lloyds Bank’s latest Business Barometer has found. The Barometer – which measures businesses’ overall confidence “by assessing their trading prospects and optimism for the economy – found that while overall confidence dipped slightly to 42%, businesses… Read More

GCC Lending Surges with $1.9t in Gross Loans Despite High Interest

Despite the tightening of monetary policy by the US Federal Reserve, the banking sector in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries experienced sustained growth in lending during the second quarter of 2023, according to a recent report by Kamco Invest. This growth was largely driven… Read More

ClearBank, the Enabler of Embedded Banking Services, Appoints Emma Hagan as CEO of UK Operations

ClearBank, the enabler of secure accounts, real-time clearing and embedded banking for financial institutions, announced that Emma Hagan has been appointed CEO of ClearBank UK, and will take up the role following regulatory approval. Hagan brings a wealth of banking experience “to the role, having… Read More

Juniper Square Appoints Brandon Sedloff as Chief Real Estate Officer

Juniper Square, the provider of partnership enablement to the private funds industry, announced that Brandon Sedloff has been promoted to Chief Real Estate Officer. In this role, Sedloff will oversee “the continued growth of Juniper Square’s real estate vertical as the firm continues to expand… Read More

Access to Capital: British Business Bank Says Bank Lending Declined in 2023, Equity Capital Down Too

Research conducted by the British Business Bank reports that bank lending dropped in 2023, delivering an amount similar to 2016. At the same time, equity capital in smaller firms cratered to levels near those in 2020. When looking more closely at private equity financing, 2023… Read More

Investment Crowdfunding Trends in the US: Report

  Crowdfund Capital Advisors (CCA) has published a new report that investigates trends in online capital formation under Reg CF (Regulation Crowdfunding). CCA was co-founded by the creators of the JOBS Act – the legislation that legalized investment crowdfunding. While the bill was signed into… Read More

Qatar Investment Authority to Launch VC Fund of Funds

Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) is set to launch Qatar’s “first” venture capital (VC) Fund of Funds, a strategic investment program to foster innovation in Qatar. The Fund of Funds program will “invest more than USD 1 billion in international and regional venture capital funds.” The… Read More

British Business Bank Is Launching £400M Midlands Engine Investment Fund II

The British Business Bank is launching its £400 million Midlands Engine Investment Fund II, unlocking additional funding to help smaller businesses in the Midlands prosper and thrive. The fund will drive sustainable economic growth “by supporting new and growing businesses across the whole of the… Read More

Journey from First to Sophomore Funds Has Never Been More Challenging, Analysis Reveals

Recent PitchBook data shows that the journey from a first to a sophomore fund has never been so challenging. Historically, when we examine the period from 2006 to 2018, 63% of first-time managers had been able to secure a second fund, however, the present environment… Read More

EquityZen Says that 28% of “Unicorns” are Now Trading Under $1 Billion

Private securities marketplace EquityZen has issued a report that notes 28% of unicorns are now trading at less than $1 billion. These former unicorns have been impacted by the overall decline in markets as well as a stumbling economy, which has impacted valuations and access… Read More

Nearly $160B Lost to Fraud and Scams, Research Report Claims

The rise of fraud in the United States continues apace, costing a huge $159 billion in one year alone, according to new research released today by Feedzai in partnership with the Global Anti-Scam Alliance (GASA). The 2023 State of Scams report shows “that nearly a… Read More

European Fixed Income Firm NordIX AG Extends Engagement with SaveLend

The partnership between SaveLend Group and NordIX began in June 2022, focusing on consumer credits distributed within Sweden. Initially, NordIX invested about MSEK 50, and this amount “has more than doubled since the partnership began.” Now, the collaboration is set “to grow further, extending to… Read More

Palatine Growth Credit Fund Will Lend to FIntechs, Others, First Close at £75 Million

Palatine Growth Credit Fund has reached its first close of £75 million. The Fund will lend to high-growth UK companies in the Fintech sector as well as cyber, SaaS, Medtech/Healthtech, AI, and more. British Business Investments, a wholly-owned commercial subsidiary of the British Business Bank,… Read More

CfPA Updates Best Practices for Members

The CfPA (Crowdfunding Professional Association ) Board of Directors has distributed a note on the adoption of its recommendations regarding best practices. According to the CfPA, the Board is now recommending that members use the term “Regulated Investment Crowdfunding.” President of CfPA Brian Christie issued… Read More

Fintech Wales Welcomes Sarah Kocianski as New CEO

FinTech Wales, an independent membership association of the fintech and financial services industry in Wales, has announced the appointment of Sarah Kocianski as its new Chief Executive Officer. Kocianski, a seasoned strategist in the Fintech and Insurtech sectors, brings over a decade of experience working… Read More

UK’s Zumo, a Digital Assets Infrastructure Provider, Appoints Jason Tucker-Feltham to Key Role

Zumo, the B2B digital assets infrastructure that prioritizes sustainability, has announced the appointment of Jason Tucker-Feltham as the company’s new Head of Sales. Tucker-Feltham is said to be “an experienced crypto sales, business development and capital introduction professional.” Prior to joining Zumo, he had reportedly… Read More

Bluevine, the Digital Banking Platform for Small Businesses, Releases Business Owner Success Survey Report

Bluevine, the one-stop digital banking platform specifically designed for small businesses, today released its inaugural Business Owner Success Survey (BOSS) Report, “benchmarking the data behind the actual decisions that US-based small business owners are making and informing their future decisions.” The data supports an “overarching… Read More