Comino is an international start-up specialising in the design and production of liquid-cooled PCs and servers. It claims that its products consume up to 40% less electricity than equivalent air-cooling computers. The company currently operates in AI, Forensic, Gaming, and Video Rendering, with aspirations to enter other domains in the coming years. Comino has sold 2,000 work stations to professional businesses, accruing sales north of 9 million EUR since its launch in 2017. Its products have been accredited by global hardware giants like AMD and ASUS. The company will use 70% of proceeds for manufacturing its devices, 10% towards marketing and promotional materials, and 20% to compensate its teams.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£949,608
DMALINK aims to create a transparent and accessible currency market for banks, funds, and corporations. The company asserts that the Foreign Exchange (FX) market is the world's largest and most liquid financial market, recording an average daily trading volume of $6.6 Trillion but is fraught with imperfect price movements. DMALINK aims to address this situation. Its portal utilises big data and analytics solutions to enable users to make better trading decisions. It also offers users access to 63 currency pair combinations. DMALINK also points out that its clients have chosen its services over 316,000 times with the company witnessing an average deal size of $585,000 and earning revenue worth $3,140,000. The company has featured in Business Insider, Yahoo Finance, and FX Markets to name a few. DMALINK will use 60% of the investment on salaries for existing and new team members allowing global growth, 20% towards marketing and sales efforts, and 20% towards technology expansion.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£425,903
Nextfin is an FCA approved aggregation and rating portal for equity and debt crowdfunding investments.
AIM is shrinking, legacy stock markets are too expensive to maintain and do not serve the requirements of SMEs, banks are closing branches, lending less and are paying little or no interest to investors. As a result of this, there is a huge growth in equity crowdfunding and P2P lending which has seen the launch of hundreds of alternative lenders & platforms that has created a new c.£3bn marketplace, expanding at 66% p.a. There is no single portal or trusted ratings index for investors to compare on a like for like basis and no secondary market to facilitate exits.
* NextFin is the new trading name of Business Agent Ltd
The solution
NextFin aggregates equity and debt crowdfunding investments to create the alternative finance marketplace. This makes it easy for investors and lenders to find and compare opportunities by presenting all investment offerings in one place. With the addition of a free of charge ratings service investors will be able to view ratings of every equity crowdfunding pitch, every P2P site, and every equity crowdfunding site. NextFin’s technology will constantly track these companies and investments providing the investor real-time intelligence on which to base investment decisions. The platforms and entrepreneurs will be self-promoting and marketing their ratings driving thousands of visitors a month to the NextFin site, in the same way, businesses refer their potential clients to Trip Advisor and Trustpilot. There is an estimated 10 million website/platform visitors per month across the whole of the alternative finance market. NextFin is targeting to direct 5% of this highly profiled traffic to its platform from which it will earn between £5-£8 per click from advertisers and partners. In addition, an in-house brokerage service also earns between 1%-6% commissions on loan placements. A future revenue stream (not featured in the financials) will be developed once visitor traffic reaches critical mass. This will see Nextfin being able to realise the full value of its captured ratings data and visitor traffic by launching a secondary market, which is estimated to be a £5bn marketplace.
NextFin is raising £500k at a pre-money valuation of £2M to: • Develop P2P and Equity site ratings• Expand the management, infrastructure and marketing resource• Increase visitor traffic to 6m a year via rating referrals
Owing to the size of the market and rapid growth of the industry, enterprise valuations in alternative finance are based on visitor traffic, market share and registered users. Recently published valuations of companies with visitor traffic of over 6m per year are in excess of £70m. NextFin is the market-leading aggregator and has first-mover advantage. It has the potential to exceed these valuations because it is the whole of the market aggregator and is currently the only ratings service provider as it grows to achieve 500,000 visitors p.m.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£274,057
The Pension Lab offers an interative platform for employees and individuals, helping them reconnect and engage with their pensions. Its mission is to provide the customers with better knowledge of pensions and promote long-term financial decision making. The company has reached the finals of 'Pitchfest' competition held at the NEC as a component of “Venturefest”, and it is also a finalist in the “Innovation in Business” category. Some of the best Fintech solutions providers and pension services such as Yodlee and Origo are in partnership with the Pension Lab. With the proceeds, the company will develop its working capital, infrastructure development, and customer acquisition.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£38,024
NOQ aims to solve the issue of queuing at events by digitising the process and bringing increased sales and profit for event management companies, coupled with data-driven insights. It aspires to capture the UK market share through partnerships with event management companies, food concession groups, PoS (Point of Sale) systems, and WiFi providers. NOQ offers a three-step solution for event-goers namely, pre-order ahead of time, click and collect or deliver to a location within the event. The company also claims that it provides a bespoke solution specific to suit the needs of each event and ensure seamless execution of the same. NOQ has overseen transactions worth £275,000+ on its platform, onboarded 13,000+ active users across iOS and Android, and covered 190+ events in 2020. It will use the investment for hiring key personnel, marketing and operational expenditures.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£214,393
Solent Automation specialises in developing, deploying and supporting automation robots to perform and tackle common manual labour-intensive tasks in factories. To solve the 'pick-and-place' challenges in an industrial setup, these robots are created with proven reliable components coupled with proprietary software to solve 'pick-and-place' challenges in an industrial environment. Two of the company's noteworthy products are 'SOLPAL 8' and 'SOLPACK 1XP, both are equipped with an all-in-one gripping tool, and can handle 16 boxes per minute and 60 packs per minute, respectively. Backed by a team of experts from manufacturing and robotics, Solent Automation provides on-site installation, training, and remote support for its products. There is also a rent-to-buy option through a 3rd party finance company. With the investment, the company aims at providing more robotic equipment most needed in factories focused on labour-intensive work functions.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£76,000
Darqube is a comprehensive platform for smarter investing. The company aims to equip finance enthusiasts, novice traders, and professionals with financial technology instruments, trading analytics, and algorithmic trading tools to hasten investment decisions. The company has multiple financial products on its platform like forex, mutual funds, cryptocurrency, and bonds. In 2019, the company launched 'Terminal', a comprehensive trading analytics platform. The year 2020 saw the company launch 'TradeLab Beta', an algorithmic trading platform, and 'Messenger', a messaging platform tailored to the needs of finance enthusiasts. Darqube has 5000 monthly active users and 75,000+ community followers. The company has also been featured in prominent publications like Business Insider, Yahoo Finance, and Marketwatch. The company will use 40% of the investment towards growth and user acquisition, 25% for product improvement, 25% for team expansion, and 10% as operating costs.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£461,811
Skin In Motion (SIM) is a first-of-its-kind exercise-friendly beauty range that seeks to promote the positive effects of exercise through healthy and confidence-boosting skincare and makeup products specifically designed to be worn pre, during, and post-exercise. SIM claims that its products are available Direct To Consumer (DTC) via its website and are listed on LookFantastic, Amazon and Oliver Bonas. SIM was awarded the 'Best New Business 2020' award by the Women's Business Club. The brand has reached 3 million potential customers and has an Instagram following of 3,000 to date. The company has also featured in Sunday Times Style Magazine, Hello!, RED Magazine, and Women's Health, to name a few. It will use the investment to grow its team, increase marketing and brand awareness, and accelerate new product developments.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£166,111
Fullgreen offers a range of 100% plant-based products that are low-carb and preservative-free alternatives for people looking to eat fewer carbohydrates, add more vegetables to their meals, or manage health issues such as obesity and diabetes. Fullgreen also claims that its products are shelf-stable negating the need to refrigerate. The company's catalogue includes non-Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) riced veggies, cauliflower risottos, and oat free plant-based breakfast meals, to name a few. Fullgreen points out that its products are listed in over 9,000 UK and US retailers. The company has dedicated production lines in the UK and US with a capacity of over 18 million pouches per annum. It has sold over 12 million pouches to date and earned £5.4 million in 2020. Fullgreen will use the investment to improve in-store promotions and activations, develop sampling activities for its target consumers, and boost geotargeted advertising and other digital marketing activities.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£752,246
Gunna Drinks (GD) manufactures and sells craft soft drinks, consisting of natural juices with less than 5% sugar having zero artificial colours or flavours. The company asserts that it has outshone established competitors like Gingerella, Fentimans and FeverTree in taste tests. GD is stocked in major supermarkets and convenience stores across the UK such as Co-ops, Sainsbury’s, Amazon, Ocado, and JD Wetherspoon. The company won the prestigious 'Great Taste Award' in 2020 and witnessed more than doubled revenues in 2018-2020, with a 23% growth in 2020 despite COVID. The company will utilise the investment to boost consumer advertising to accelerate the growth of its online store, focus on trade investment to further increase the rate of sale, and concentrate on New Product Development (NPD).
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£696,261
