Executive recruitment firm Intramezzo has launched its new equity crowdfunding platform, Stakeholderz. Designed to help early stage UK technology companies secure investment, the platform is supported by Microsoft for Startups, the software giant’s business accelerator in London.

The Finance Durham fund, established by Durham County Council and managed by Maven Capital Partners, has invested £250,000 in pioneering automotive styling centre, Muss Media Ltd. Funds raised will enable the company to invest in its design, sales and marketing functions, roll out a national car dealership engagement strategy and employ additional wrap technicians to fulfil growing demand. As a result of the investment, the firm will establish its design, sales and marketing functions in County Durham.

The Jenson SEIS and EIS Fund 2017/18 has invested into Enploy Limited.

The European Commission and the European Investment Fund (EIF) have launched a Pan-European Venture Capital Funds-of-Funds programme (VentureEU) to boost investment in innovative start-up and scale-up companies across Europe.

Statistics collected by Finnish Business Angels Network ry (FiBAN) and Finnish Venture Capital Association ry (FVCA) show Finland blasting to another all-time high on investments made into Finnish startups and early stage growth companies in 2017. 

CoInvestor, the leading supplier of integrated technology to the alternative asset sector, has been selected by Oxford Capital to support them on their journey of achieving a fully digitised investment process.

Spectral Edge, the image fusion technology specialists, has secured $5.3 million in further funding from existing investors Parkwalk Advisors and IQ Capital. Based in Cambridge with deep academic roots, Spectral Edge combines cutting-edge imaging science with machine learning to improve pictures and videos on mass-market devices. This is done in real time with a pixel-level, embeddable technology that can be implemented in software or in silicon.

The technology behind the process can be used across a range of potential applications that rely on image quality for either function or aesthetics - from mobile to security, and from automotive to on-demand video or live broadcast.

Birmingham-based Redbeard, a firm that develops code for Apple (iOS) apps has secured investment from the British Robotics Seed Fund (BRSF). The BRSF has provided £80,000 funding alongside £50,000 from private investors. Monies will be used to expand the company’s global development community and Code Store.

As the impact investing movement rounds the corner into its second decade, organizations across the industry are taking stock in how far we’ve come—and indeed, there has been remarkable progress—and identifying with increasingly clarity what work remains to be done. Earlier this week, The Global Impact Investing Network launched their Roadmap for the Future of Impact Investing, offering a compelling view of priorities for the sector over the next decade, sourced from over 350 key players from across the ecosystem. The roadmap calls for mobilizing increased capital to achieve impact at scale and meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as well as having a fundamental effect on investing writ large by ingraining impact considerations into all investing decision making.

The British Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (BVCA) has welcomed Calum Paterson, Managing Partner of Scottish Equity Partners (SEP), as its Chairman for 2018/19.

Maven Capital Partners has completed a £1.1 million VCT investment in WaterBear Education Ltd, a private higher education college which provides a range of Master of Arts (MA) and Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree courses across the creative industries in partnership with the University of Chichester.  

Funds advised and managed by YFM Equity Partners have backed an investment into Eikon Group Limited, a cutting edge, end-to-end, digital post-production services for the motion picture and broadcast industry.