ITALY: Wora, the Milanese startup that offers same-day delivery services by appointment, dedicated to e-commerce and retailers, has closed a € 600,000 seed round that will allow it to continue the development of its proprietary technology and to extend the service to new Italian cities and in the main European capitals. Lead investors are the members of Italian Angels for Growth, together with the Investor Club and some business angels.

ITALY: MgShell, a MedTech that aims to revolutionise the treatment of exudative maculopathy, announces the closing of a €500,000 investment round by Bios Line Holding, a company that invests in Life Sciences ventures, Club degli Investitori, one of the leading business angel groups in Italy, and Italian Angels for Biotech, the first Italian angel association exclusively dedicated to Life Sciences. The latter made the investment through the Ersel Group’s Simon Fiduciaria.

Report shows investment in startups with a strong focus on sustainability and food security is growing in scope and importance each year.

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Netherlands: Vev, a company founded by former Apple employees, has raised €5m from Notion Capital and Point Nine Capital and a number of angel investors. Vev helps aspiring entrepreneurs to launch a business by providing its users with a ready-made and industry-specific software and payments track. Using Vev, founders can choose to launch one of over 100 business-types -- ranging from restaurateur to dog walker -- and Vev’s platform provides them with all the tools they need to start trading.

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Early-stage company entrepreneurs are hamstrung by a lack of information on how to access the external funding needed to support their growth plans, according to new research published today by the Venture Capital Trust Association (VCTA).

The VCTA surveyed 240 senior decision makers in charge of recently launched small businesses less than seven years old and employing up to 250 employees.  Despite an overwhelming majority (92%) of respondents requiring equity finance over the coming two years, almost half (44%) say they lack information on how to access it, the figure rising to 47% among entrepreneurs based outside of London and the Southeast.

A venture capital firm focused on supporting direct to consumer (DTC) entrepreneurs, Fearless Adventures, has invested a significant six figure sum in Manchester-based women’s football e-commerce business, Foudys.

Fiona Hudson-Kelly, author of ‘Grow and Sell your Startup’, shares her insights....

A new report by Economic Intelligence Wales assessing the impact of the Welsh Government’s interventions through its Economic Resilience Fund (ERF) shows 30% of small businesses surveyed have seen their employee numbers grow since the pandemic – with nearly half predicting further growth in the next 12 months.

After a decade as a government-backed organisation serving the UK scaleup tech ecosystem, Tech Nation will be closing its doors from 31st March 2023.