B-North is a UK-based business lending company. It has combined cloud-native technology with face-to-face relationship banking. The company asserts that SMEs account for over 60% of private-sector employment in the UK, have driven job growth over the past ten years, and are central to driving economic recovery. It intends to disrupt the £150 billion UK Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) lending market. B-North has raised a seed capital of over £6.8 million including a six-figure investment from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority to establish its core team, as well as, build lending and deposit-taking platforms. The company is now seeking further investment through a bridge round to extend the cash runway from the end of Q4 2020 into Q1-Q2 2021 to achieve the necessary regulatory capital to become a bank and commence lending.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£2,149,256
Appital is an emerging financial market platform that will use digital profiling, unique algorithms and notifications to connect institutional demand and supply. With Appital, corporate and institutional companies within the equity capital markets space will have the opportunity to exchange illiquid equity without an investment bank or broker. Appital will also remove the dependence on email and phone, thereby ensuring efficiency and accessibility. The company is raising fund to built the Appital software, achieve FCA regulation, generate marketing material and gain contracts with partner settlement and KYC providers. Furthermore, the company will enhance the functionality of the software by leveraging its network to other products such as primary debt and primary equity deal flow.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£349,060
AgeWage is a pension scoring system that provides customized information to the customers. By bringing together your pension pots, AgeWage scores each of the pension pot out of 100 and tells you how well they have worked for you. The scoring system offers information that helps the customer make decisions on how to consolidate pots, reinvest their money and most importantly, how to get their money back. The company has signed an MoU with Royal London to enter into B2B arrangements. It was also chosen for the Direct Support Innovate programme with the FCA. AgeWage has been voted the best new idea in the BGL partnership awards(2018). With its proceeds, the company is planning to invest in digital development, marketing the application to the general public and other organizations. Also, it is trying to build out the infrastructure to support the development of the product with third parties such as Annuity Providers, IFAs, and Drawdown Providers.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£317,760
Helping insurance companies tackle fraudulent claims by using a combination of blockchain and artificial intelligence. BlockClaim aims to reduce the time spent by car insurers processing false claims, by performing data calculations on a driver and their driving behaviour. This information is fed into the BlockClaim system, which produces a fraud probability risk score.
BlockClaim's technology has been piloted by large insurance firms such as Admiral and Generali. The company's tool consists of a plug-and-play module that is integrated into existing systems used by insurance firms. Revenue is generated via a fixed fee per claim processed via BlockClaim’s product, as well as an initial set-up fee.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£400,011
Fast-tracking ideas by connecting innovators and organisations together on a single platform. WorldLabs is helping the development of innovations by streamlining the process of those seeking funding and resources to make changes in the world. The company has already partnered with establishments such as UCL and Cambridge University.
WorldLab's ecosystem is designed to assist innovators in raising awareness for their initiatives and collaborate with businesses that support the idea. To date, almost 7,000 members are signed up to the platform, with more than 1,000 live projects listed. Funds will be used to increase the number of partnerships with international universities and institutions, as well as develop a mobile app with sophisticated features such as machine learning algorithms.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£527,943
Husky is the UK’s only open, SaaS platform for workplace pensions. For employers, the platform deals with legal and compliance burdens of auto-enrolment while helping reduce pension costs. For individuals and company directors, the app is instrumental in bringing profitable and responsible investments with the Husky for Everyone app. And for advisers and accountants, it ensures strong client relationships amidst transparency and efficiency. Close to 1.4 million employers & 22.6 million workers are affected by the UK’s automatic enrolment (AE) legislation. Within this market, a conservative estimate of fees charged on employees by pension providers is £2 billion a year; Husky aims to disrupt this market & is ready to scale. Its method of operation has led to it achieving important milestones. With more than 1000 firms onboarded, a 92% renewal rate, and an average annual fee of £438, Husky charges its onboarded firms (including Crowdcube) with monthly recurring fees laid out as part of a 3-year subscription model. With the funds received, the company aims to disrupt the relatively stagnant workplace pensions industry with innovative products and empower its customers.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£417,338
Ouno is dedicated to simplifying business travel. Their application provides luxurious, on-demand rides for executives, seamlessly connecting clients with their preferred drivers. By 2023, Ouno has generated £1.1 million in revenue since the app's launch, although it has experienced a negative EBITDA of £350,000 during this period.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£411,778
Created in 2015, Fourex provides an advanced and innovative self-service kiosk for exchanging over 150 currencies in both coins and notes. The company has grown its revenue by 175 % and it is continuing to grow. It will be live in 80 locations by the end of 2019. Fourex has a presence at Heathrow, Gatwick, and Stansted with access to 153 million passengers per year. It is located in 21 London underground stations with a combined 1.9 million passengers each day. In early 2018, Fourex has extended its business from 12 locations to 66 locations. It has won innovation awards from Lloyds Bank, Virgin, and Amazon. The company's revenue has increased by 175% in 2 years. Fourex's current partners are TfL/London, Westfield, Underground, Welcome Break, Intu, Moto and Roadchef. The company aims to become a principal multi-currency exchange solution. With the proceeds, the company will be accelerating its growth in the UK, by expanding the network of machines nationwide both in international travel hubs, high footfall retails and transit locations.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£928,830
The Juggling King (TJK) is one of the UK's first Seed-to-Bottle rum production companies from Guernsey. TJK argues that its product is the first rum ever to be distilled with cultivated sugarcane grown under glass in Guernsey and to be produced on the island. The company has appointed English former footballer Michael Owens as its global brand ambassador and featured on James Martin's Saturday Morning show. TJK has also onboarded 18 trade customers including hotels, restaurants and bars since its launch in August 2020. It will use the investment for working capital, customs & excise duty expenses, input costs, and other verticals.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£402,059
Gively is an online marketplace where users can give and get secondhand items for free. The secondhand clothing market will double in value to £50 billion annually by 2023, and the company finds itself as a suitable contender in this domain. They aim to lower greenhouse gas emissions and minimise landfill sites through its portal. The company has reached over 5,000 users, 70% of which came from unpaid channels. Gively won an SME (Small and medium enterprises) grant worth £10,000 of television advertising and has received rave reviews from its users through the App Store, social media, and in person. They will use 50% of the investment for marketing purposes, 25% for technology up-gradation, and 25% for hiring human resources.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£105,207
