Frasers Group has snapped up luxury clothing website Matches Fashion for £52million. The company, which is controlled by billionaire Mike Ashley, will buy Matches from private equity firm Apax Partners, its owner since 2017. It marks a further expansion of Ashley’s empire, with Frasers owning retailers including Sports Direct, House of Fraser and Flannels as […]
The number of entrepreneurs under the age of 40 selling their businesses has increased by 23% in the last year, rising from 4,719 in 2019/20 to 5,803 in 2020/21, new research shows. Recent years have seen significant success stories for young UK tech company entrepreneurs selling their businesses to PE/VC funds, alongside consolidation across various […]
Harriet, the first full-stack AI solution designed to get companies’ internal data ready for the AI revolution, relieve People teams of their daily admin burden, and give every staff member their own HR assistant, has raised a £1.2m pre-seed round led by Concept Ventures and joined by Frontline Ventures, Portfolio Ventures, and Notion Capital. Poor […]
A new partnership between the University of Liverpool’s VEC (Virtual Engineering Centre), Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU) and Edge Hill University has launched to support business innovation across the Liverpool City Region (LCR). The new £5.1m Horizons programme, funded by the Liverpool City Region’s £44m UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) allocation, will support more than […]
Maison Sport, the leading online platform connecting ski enthusiasts with professional instructors, has announced the successful completion of an ambitious £3.1 million investment round, bolstering its position as a trailblazer in the ski tech industry. The investment will be instrumental in expanding the platform’s lesson offerings, accommodating the surging demand for personalised and professional skiing […]
Paysend, a global fintech leader in international money transfers, has successfully raised an impressive $65 million in its latest funding round. The investment round follows the partnership with Mastercard announced earlier this year, through which Paysend will enhance cross-border payments for SME’s via its Open Payments Network (OPN). In addition, Paysend has secured a strategic […]
UKEF and K-Sure have secured support worth £367 million for South Korean manufacturer SeAH Steel Holding’s construction of a wind tech factory near Redcar, in the Tees Valley. The financing will secure inward investment which will create 750 jobs in Teesside and ensures construction of the world’s largest wind monopile factory in Redcar. Issuing its […]
Formula One stars Mika Hakkinen and David Coulthard have teamed up with a pair of entrepreneurs to launch a stock market business that allows the public to invest in ultra-rare classic cars. The duo, along with the Le Mans endurance-race winner Allan McNish, have joined the board of a start-up that will this week fire […]
Nc’nean Distillery has secured a Virgin Money funding package with the backing of UK Government department UK Export Finance (UKEF) to help the independent distillery grow in North American markets and bring its vision for sustainable, organic Scottish whisky overseas. Taking its name from Neachneohain – a Gaelic goddess known as the Queen of Spirits […]
Award-winning Afro hair care company Nylah’s Naturals has raised a £530k seed round led by Midven. The investment will come from both the Midlands Engine Investment Fund (MEIF) through the MEIF West Midlands Equity Fund and the West Midlands Co-Investment Fund, in addition to a syndicate of angel investors. Both funds are managed by Midven, […]