A Hull company which specialises in high-end audio-visual systems and whose clients have included royals and celebrities has secured a £100,000 loan from NPIF - Enterprise Ventures Debt Finance to help fund its expansion. It is the first investment in Humber by the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund (NPIF).

European Buy & Build activity in 2016 reached its highest level on record² with the largest number of deals in the UK & Ireland, according to Silverfleet Capital’s latest annual European Buy & Build Monitor¹.  

Hometree, a startup that intends to revolutionise the way that homeowners buy a new boiler, making it as easy as ordering a takeaway meal, has raised £1.9m in funding from four venture capital investors: LocalGlobe, DN Capital, Oxford Capital and FJ Labs - who between them have backed some of Europe’s leading start-up’s including Purplebricks, Zoopla, Eve, Shazam, Transferwise & Improbable. Veteran private equity investor Jon Moulton is also one of a handful of city backers.

Diffblue, a world leader in AI for code, today announces that it has raised $22 million in Series A funding, one year after its spin-out from the University of Oxford. This round is led by Goldman Sachs Principal Strategic Investments, alongsideOxford Sciences Innovations (OSI)and Oxford Technology and Innovations Fund (OTIF).  

OurCrowd has signed a strategic collaboration agreement with LetsVenture, India’s largest marketplace for startup funding.  As part of this partnership, OurCrowd will offer curated deals to Indian investor syndicates managed by LetsVenture, as well as showcase Indian startups on OurCrowd’s platform, giving selected Indian startups access to accredited investors globally and to business development opportunities.

Mobeus Equity Partners has appointed Amy Reyniers as Marketing Director. Amy will lead brand, marketing and communications for the business, as it moves into its exciting next phase of development, having raised its first institutional fund.

Calculus Capital will invest £2.4 million as a cornerstone investor in a £6.6 million institutional and private investment round into Blu Wireless Technology, a firm leading the way in bringing ultra-fast millimetre Wave (mmWave) wireless technology into homes and businesses through the roll-out of Wi-Gig® and 5G networks.

BGF has invested £3.85m in support of Dolphin Homes, a South Coast based specialist care provider for young adults with complex health needs. The funds will be used for the provision of two new care homes in Hampshire, as well as investing further into Dolphin’s existing homes. 

The Greater Manchester Loan Fund, which is managed by Maven Capital Partners, has invested £0.3m in Tactus Group which started its business as a brand developer and wholesaler for premium quality mobile phone and tablet accessories. The funding will enable Tactus to acquire a new lease for a site in Salford, Greater Manchester to expand its product range and further penetrate the hi-tech consumer electronics sector. 

Mobeus Equity Partners has led a £3 million funding round for MyTutor (http://mytutor.co.uk?), the leading digital platform with the potential to disrupt the £2 billion UK tutoring market, with participation from high-profile angel investors including Clive Cowdery (Resolution) and Thomas Hoegh (Arts Alliance).

IW Capital has successfully facilitated a £626,000 loan to Discovery Yachts to support the company’s acquisition of Southerly Yachts – a world renowned manufacturer of cruising yachts based in the UK.

Tech businesses remain optimistic about their prospects over the next 12 months according to recent research from Smith & Williamson, the accountancy, investment management and tax group.  Nearly 90% of tech businesses were optimistic for their own prospects for the next 12 months with over half (55%) expecting the economy to improve in the next 12 months.