Episode 1's Adrian  Lloyd gives advice on how to make sure your pitch results in an actual investment.

Univercells SA and Global Health Investment Fund have closed a €16 million ($18.8M) Series B equity financing. Investment proceeds will support the continued development of Univercells’ game-changing biomanufacturing technology, which has the potential to dramatically reduce the capital expenditure, physical footprint and operating costs required to produce a variety of complex biologics.

Shieldpay has increased its global footprint by launching in the US by partnering with the car classified site, AutoClassics.com. 

SilverStreet Capital, a leading investor across the agricultural value chain, has been awarded Ethical Investor of the Year award as part of Corporate LiveWire’s 2018 Global Fund Awards.

Camtronics Vale Limited have completed a management buy-out with the support of a £400,000 loan from the Development Bank of Wales. 

Led by Managing Director Paul Macleur, the senior management team have acquired the £2million turnover contract electronics manufacturing business from the parent company PhotonStar LED Plc. Based on Tredegar Business Park, Camtronics offers a full range of electronics manufacturing services and employs 31.

Economy Secretary Ken Skates has launched a new research unit tasked with addressing the gap in Welsh SME finance data.

Economic Intelligence Wales, a new collaboration between the Development Bank of Wales, Cardiff Business School and the Office for National Statistics, was formally launched by the Economy Secretary at an event held at the Royal Mint in Llantrisant at the end of last month.

Beringea, the international growth capital investor, has completed the sale of its stake in Watchfinder.co.uk Limited, the leading global platform for pre-owned premium watches, to Richemont, the Swiss luxury goods group. Watchfinder has spearheaded the development of the market for pre-owned luxury watches, delivering over £275m in sales since foundation.

OurCrowd backed Sight Diagnostics has launched OLO, an AI-based blood diagnostics device which offers lab-quality Complete Blood Count (CBC) tests from finger prick samples at the point-of-care. The company also announces the completion of a 250-person clinical trial at Israel’s Shaare Zedek Medical Center, which led to a CE Mark registration for OLO. This European regulatory certification indicates OLO’s conformity with high safety, health, and environmental protection standards and allows for commercial sale in countries that require CE marking.

Maven Capital Partners has further expanded its investment team with the appointment of Jamie Fraser to help manage funds across the North East. Joining as Investment Manager to source and complete deals on behalf of Maven’s private equity funds, Jamie will also help manage the £27m North East Development Capital Fund (NEDCF), supported by the European Regional Development Fund and the £20m Finance Durham Fund, established by Durham County Council.

Maven Capital Partners has completed a £2 million investment in Lending Works, a leading UK peer-to-peer lender. The total transaction value also includes £800,000 of funding from NVM Private Equity, Pollen Street Capital, and a small number of business angels. The investment will be used to strengthen Lending Works’ sales and marketing function to support the continued expansion of the business, capitalising on the significant growth forecasted in the P2P market, and enabling it to originate and convert more loans through its established sales channels, such as brokers and price comparison sites.

Beauhurst's latest report takes a detailed look at foreign investment into British companies. This analysis looks at levels of investment from overseas in the past seven years, and created a detailed picture of where it's going and where it's come from. 

The Government has just published its white paper on our future relationship with the EU. With this in mind, it is more important than ever to understand how the UK's growing businesses interact with the rest of the world. 

The findings show that 2017 was the best year on record for overseas investment into British companies. Until now, countries in the EU have been an important source of this funding, but so has the US — will Brexit change this?

The British Business Bank has launched the £40m Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Investment Fund (CIOSIF), aimed at boosting the local economy by providing debt and equity finance to help growing small businesses across the region.