A Hull company which specialises in high-end audio-visual systems and whose clients have included royals and celebrities has secured a £100,000 loan from NPIF - Enterprise Ventures Debt Finance to help fund its expansion. It is the first investment in Humber by the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund (NPIF).

Hometree, a startup that intends to revolutionise the way that homeowners buy a new boiler, making it as easy as ordering a takeaway meal, has raised £1.9m in funding from four venture capital investors: LocalGlobe, DN Capital, Oxford Capital and FJ Labs - who between them have backed some of Europe’s leading start-up’s including Purplebricks, Zoopla, Eve, Shazam, Transferwise & Improbable. Veteran private equity investor Jon Moulton is also one of a handful of city backers.

Diffblue, a world leader in AI for code, today announces that it has raised $22 million in Series A funding, one year after its spin-out from the University of Oxford. This round is led by Goldman Sachs Principal Strategic Investments, alongsideOxford Sciences Innovations (OSI)and Oxford Technology and Innovations Fund (OTIF).  

BGF has invested £3.85m in support of Dolphin Homes, a South Coast based specialist care provider for young adults with complex health needs. The funds will be used for the provision of two new care homes in Hampshire, as well as investing further into Dolphin’s existing homes. 

IW Capital has successfully facilitated a £626,000 loan to Discovery Yachts to support the company’s acquisition of Southerly Yachts – a world renowned manufacturer of cruising yachts based in the UK.

AllBright, the first funding and support platform of its kind in the UK for female entrepreneurs, is hosting FoundHER, a multi venue, two city programme of events aimed at founders, investors and anyone interested in entrepreneurship. Taking place in London from June 26th - 29th and Manchester from July 3rd - 4th, the festival will host a range of events in inspiring locations across the two cities.

To find out more or purchase tickets, please visit: https://allbright.co/foundher/

EnteroBiotix, a privately held Scottish biotechnology company focused on using the body’s own microorganisms to prevent and treat disease, has raised £500,000 in an oversubscribed seed round of investment. The financing was led by Equity Gap and supported by the Scottish Investment Bank, the investment arm of Scottish Enterprise. 

Octopus Investments has launched a £30 million joint fundraise for its two Alternative Investment Market (AIM) VCTs, with scope for the offer to be extended by an additional £10 million.

Obby, the community marketplace for people to list, discover and book learning experiences in London, recently closed a £250k angel funding round to help grow its class offering and reach more passionate Londoners.

BGF (Business Growth Fund) has invested an initial £2m in Milk Visual Effects, an Oscar winning independent visual effects (VFX) company which creates innovative and complex visual effects for high-end television and feature films. 

Shoosmiths has advised LDC, the UK’s leading mid-market private equity investor, on its latest investment into Lucid Group Communications, a global specialist provider of strategic medical communications services to world leading pharmaceutical companies.

Activate Capital, the Startup Studio, is sharing its business expertise with entrepreneurs as part of its second podcast season. With insightful and entertaining information, the eight ten-minute episodes guide listeners through key topics to consider when building a new company. To listen go to https://www.activatecapital.co.uk/activate-podcast.