For entrepreneurs to be able to find the ‘right’ investors, and vice versa for funders to select the ‘right’ founders is still very important  aspect of angel investing.  In this piece, Peter Cowley from The Invested Investor tries to describe the characteristics of the right investor.

Minerva Business Angels, part of the University of Warwick Science Park and one of the most successful business angel networks in the UK, is joining forces with Nottingham Trent University and the University of Nottingham in a partnership aimed at improving access to finance for innovative local companies.  Minerva has chosen to work with Nottingham’s two universities because both have a track record of identifying research and ideas that have commercial potential, and of providing knowledge and advice to firms looking to improve through innovation.

Lingua Custodia, the specialist in Machine Learning applied to financial translation, has closed a €1.1m fundraising operation. This brings the total amount of funds raised since its inception in 2011 to € 2.4m.

QuoteOnSite has announced a cash injection to facilitate aggressive growth over the next 12 months thanks to investment from the Development Bank of Wales and Deri Green.

FibreCRM, a Penryn-based software company, has secured a £250,000 investment from the Chelverton Investor Club (managed by Chelverton Asset Management) as part of a £750,000 funding package, which also includes funding from Cass Entrepreneurship Fund, the Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Investment Fund and the FSE Angel Network.

North East entrepreneurs developing industry-changing innovation have taken to the stage in the first of a series of new pitching events delivered by the recently launched Newcastle Angel Hub.

Green Angel Syndicate has backed NatureMetrics, a pioneer in sampling, sequencing and analysing Environmental DNA. eDNA is left behind in the environment by the creatures which pass through it – in water, soil, or droppings, for example.

NatureMetrics can extract minute quantities of eDNA from samples of water, sediment or soil, and identify the species that are present. This technology can be used to identify protected species, such as great crested newts, damaging invasive species such as zebra mussels, and for Environmental Impact Assessments. 

A data pipeline management company set up by Google alumni and supported through its early days by Y Combinator, has secured a $2 million investment from LocalGlobe and angel investors. Dataform is building a platform to transform the way businesses manage their data warehouses, helping data teams publish, test and collaborate on datasets at scale. The seed funding will help the company continue to grow both its sales and engineering sides of the business and further develop its product. 

Fintech startup Joko has carried out its first fundraising with top-tier investors — Partech, Axeleo Capital, Lafayette Plug and Play, and several angel investors from the sector — to develop its simple and universal loyalty program integrated into credit or debit cards.

Traditional and single-brand loyalty programs are no longer appropriate for the customised buying experience that millennials want. With most brands, it is necessary to have the loyalty card with you and to scan it when you pay. Already existing programs are not or only slightly customised, and the consumer accumulating points on each of his programs has little visibility on the benefits he gets. As a result of this disappointing experience, millennials are increasingly abandoning these historical programs.

Ascension Ventures, the London-based investment firm, had an eventful evening at the annual UKBAA Angel Investment Awards.

As an angel looking to invest, what are the timing considerations? We all know that the successful start-up to exit journey is most dependent on the founders but that there are many additional important factors such as sufficient capital, successful technology, competition and an element of luck?Peter Cowley from The Invested Investor investigates....