Turquoise, the UK merchant bank specialising in energy, environment and efficiency, has announced its 13th deal for the Low Carbon Innovation Fund 2 (LCIF2), a £300,000 investment in Weeding Technologies. LCIF2 led the £890,000 equity round, which included Calculus Nominees and SFC Nominees as co-investors.

North west-based multi-family investment office, Arete, has announced it has led a £3m investment into experience analytics platform, Uncrowd.  Created by retail and systems experts Richard Hammond and Rocky Howard, Uncrowd is a cutting-edge platform that allows global retailers and brands to measure customer experience through innovative methods of data collection. It was recognised as one of Silicon Valley’s best retail tech start-ups at this year’s Plug and Play Fall Summit and has earnt a place on the Plug and Play accelerator programme.

High-end online travel agency, Luxury Cottages, is set to create a significant number of new jobs after securing a substantial investment from the Midlands Engine Investment Fund (MEIF) West Midlands Equity Fund, managed by Midven, part of the Future Planet Capital Group.

Payhawk, the payments and expense solution with offices in London, Sofia, Berlin and Barcelona, has raised $112 million just three years after its inception, valuing the company at $570m. The Series B round is led by the San Francisco-based investor Greenoaks, who has a strong track record of investing in high-growth technology companies such as Gorillas, Robinhood, Stripe and Brex. All existing investors, including QED Investors, Earlybird Digital East and Eleven Ventures are participating in the round.

Shield-IoT, a leader in mass-scale IoT and IIoT network cyber security and operational monitoring, has closed a $7.4 million Series A round of funding. The Series A round was led by NextLeap Ventures and Bloc Ventures, with participation of Atlas Ventures, Akamai Technologies, Springtide Ventures, DIVEdigital and Janvest Capital Partners.

Exus Management Partners, a leading expert in powering sustainable investments through operational excellence, has continued its global expansion by announcing a new office in Istanbul.

YFM Equity Partners, has once again seen the offers for its two managed Venture Capital Trusts (VCTs) fully subscribed in a matter of weeks. After launching on 22 September, it has already succeeded in raising £60m of committed funds as it continues to invest in SMEs nationwide, with a focus on businesses in the tech sector.

Continuity, the company using AI to help insurers improve underwriting for SMEs, has raised €5m from Elaia Partners, Bpifrance and Kamet ventures.  Created in 2019 with renowned European venture builder Kamet Ventures, Continuity’s SaaS platform uses Open Data and AI to detect insurance contracts that are either outdated or invalid across four product lines, including Professional Indemnity, Commercial Property, Construction Workers Insurance, and Directors & Officers Liability.

A TECH start-up that eases the administrative burden left with bereaved families has set its sights on rapid expansion, after receiving support from a team of North East innovation experts.

Settld has secured over £800,000 for its end-of-life admin platform, which automates bereavement notifications to over 750 companies from banks to social media players. By digitising the process, Settld reduces the admin stress often left with grieving families and the professionals who support them.

Award-winning medtech firm, Glyconics© has secured £1.5million in an Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) funding round ahead of a series A round next year. The innovative diagnostics startup, with offices in Cambridge, Norwich and Basingstoke, raised well over the intended £850k in a raise led by investment platform Wealth Club and existing investors, Deepbridge Capital and Boundary Capital. Demand from Wealth Club private investors and angel investors pushed the total amount further to £1.5 million.

Pixie, a UK-based startup creating a simpler approach to practice management and workflow automation for small accounting and bookkeeping firms, has raised £2.25 million in a seed funding round led by Triple Point Ventures, with the participation of Seedcamp, MMC Ventures, and serial entrepreneurs and angel investors including Duane Jackson (Kashflow, Staffology), Will Neale and Chris Adelsbach.

Palatine has unveiled a major rebrand to reflect its leading position in driving and delivering sustainable business growth in the mid-market and its pioneering role in UK Impact investing, following a milestone year of investment and exit activity.