Oliver Woolley of Envestors shares his thoughts on the impact that Covid pandemic has had on investment.

Companies in the digital, media and internet sectors have taken advantage of the open public markets, with no fewer than 18 IPOs completed in the first quarter of 2021.

With an initial pre-seed investment of £25k as part of a larger £150k SEIS seed round raised through team members, angels and friends, the DadShed application is ready to move onto its second build (v2), incorporating an updated category section, a mobile app version and a round of UI/UX design improvements.

Leading commission-free brokerage platform, Stake, has successfully raised US$30M from Tiger Global and partners of DST Global to fuel its expansion into new markets - including Europe - and broaden its product offering.

Oceanium, the UK-based seaweed processing and food & material innovation business has announced the first close of a Seed II Round worth £2m led by Green Angel Syndicate with World Wildlife Fund. Oceanium will use the funds to scale up its proprietary biorefinery and processing model to open up the market for the nascent sustainable seaweed farming industry. Oceanium's technical and innovative refinement method has been developed to process seaweed for applications including use in plant-based foods and sustainable packaging material as an alternative to plastic.

The value of venture capital raised by UK companies surged to the highest quarterly total in Q1 2021 according to research from Refinitiv Deals Intelligence.

UK companies raised £3.5bn from 206 deals in the first three months of 2021 – up from the £2.5bn in Q4 2020 from 140 deals.

Ankorstore, the curated marketplace connecting independent brands with the most loved local retailers, has raised $100 million in Series B funding led by Tiger Global and Bain Capital Ventures.

Venture Capital investment firm JPIN VCATS has completed a £1.5million raise to drive forward the development of the world's largest investment corridor between the the UK and India. The investment has come from a group of Super Angels, renowned Family Offices and Institutional Investors from the UK, India, Europe, Africa and the Middle East in a raise that spans a global ecosystem of investors. JPIN VCATS will look at backing growth to Series D rounds.  

Maven Capital Partners has led an investment round into Horizon Technologies for an undisclosed amount. The UK aerospace OEM is a world leader in airborne signals intelligence (SIGINT) systems. Additionally, the company’s business segment, Horizon Aerospace, is a leading developer of airborne Sat Phone monitoring systems for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) applications.

Stoke-on-Trent-based The Supply Register (TSR), has secured further funding from venture capital firm Midven through the Midlands Engine Investment Fund (MEIF).

The company, which has created an online teacher recruitment platform, is using the funding to accelerate the next phase of its growth as schools return and Covid-19 restrictions ease. This follows The Supply Register experiencing a surge in demand for its services.

Churches Fire, a Southampton-based provider of fire safety and security compliance services, has secured a significant £75 million refinancing package from HSBC UK and HSBC Asset Management, Northleaf Capital Partners and Siemens Bank.

BGF has completed a £5.2 million investment in Odro, a Scottish-headquartered technology business that provides video interviewing and engagement software to the recruitment industry.