Cambridge University spinout Barocal has raised $10 million seed funding from World Fund, Breakthrough Energy Discovery, Cambridge Enterprise Ventures and IP Group.

Barocal has patented solid-state cooling and heating platform technology designed to replace century-old vapour-compression systems at cost parity – all while reducing emissions.

The technology targets the $450bn global heating and cooling market, addressing the rapidly growing demand for cooling in data centres.

The funding will be used to make key hires and accelerate commercialisation.

The recipients of The King’s Awards for Enterprise have been announced, celebrating the achievements of outstanding businesses from across the UK and recognising their vital contribution to economic growth and improving lives.

This year marks a significant milestone for the Awards, as they celebrate 60 years since the first honours were conferred in 1966. The programme has since recognised more than 8,000 UK businesses.

A total of 186 awards have been issued with one company, Bristol-based Tailfin, being recognised for two Awards. The Awards span a diverse range of sectors and celebrate the ambition, ingenuity, and success of the UK’s business community.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

French GP platform Doctolib has acquired London-based peer Medicus and plans to invest more than £100 million in the UK.

The deal will see Doctolib deliver their combined technology, AI and services to the clinical and administrative teams of GP practices across the country.

Its plans include the hiring of 150 people and establishment of a full R&D centre in London to drive innovation in primary care.

Reach plc revenues hit by Google shift

Publisher Reach plc has reported a large drop in revenues across both digital and print for the first quarter of its financial year.

The firm – behind the Mirror, Express, Daily Star as well as leading regional publications such as the Manchester Evening News – saw an 8.1% fall in digital revenue compared with Q1 FY25.

Of that, there was a 10.5% fall in indirect revenue. It blamed ‘ongoing disruption in search and referral volumes’ – mainly a lessened Google presence.

Print revenue was down 6.6%, with overall group revenue 6.9% lower.

Trainline plc has reported robust trading performance for the 12 months ended 28th February 2026.

Net ticket sales were up 7% to 6.3 billion, while revenue grew 2% to £453 million.

Adjusted EBITDA for the period was £177m, up 11%.

Author: Roshni Bandesha, head of ESG & sustainability, BGF

In a volatile economic and geopolitical environment, tech businesses can be tempted to focus solely on their bottom line.

When key markets like the US are looking to minimise the importance of ESG, it can feel easier to turn a blind eye to environmental and social commitments and instead focus on immediate profitability.

But, as investor scrutiny on governance and data practices intensifies, those UK tech companies that are taking it seriously will unlock a competitive advantage. ESG commitments and certifications, like B Corp, are not only evidence of good business, but they can be a precursor for stability amidst volatility.

For us, ESG strategy isn’t a nice-to-have – it’s a clear indicator of good business. That’s why in 2023, we became B Corp certified ourselves.

B Corp is an incredibly rigorous process that addresses every area of the business, including Governance, Workers, Community, Environment and Customers. While a challenging process, we believe it is a marker of value creation – and so do plenty of our portfolio companies.

GC Business Finance, a responsible lender supporting SMEs across the UK, has appointed Aaron Malins as director of business finance.

Established in 2002 as part of The Growth Company, GCBF has a strong track record of supporting SMEs that struggle to access funding from mainstream lenders.

It currently manages a number of leading SME-focused funds, including as national Business Support Partner for the British Business Bank’s Start Up Loans programme, along with smaller loans for the Bank’s Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II.

Malins brings over two decades of experience across finance, lending and advisory. He previously served as CFO of Manchester-based regulated consumer finance firm DSG, as well as managing director of its lending division Unity Auto Finance.

LIFT – Lancashire’s annual innovation and technology festival – will take place on 11th June at Burnley Football Club’s Turf Moor stadium.

LIFT 26 will feature speakers from London, Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds, Cumbria, Cheshire and Sunderland.

Among them are Alex Heerema, an investment manager at VC firm Ascension; Sarah Barber, managing partner at Jenson Funding Partners; serial entrepreneur James Butcher, a founding member of Lancashire’s Fhunded Angel network; Jane Theaker, a life sciences investment consultant from SpinXperts; Toby Biollo, a tech investment specialist from HSBC Innovation Banking; and rock guitarist-turned-music tech founder, Hazel Savage, who sold her Musiio AI business to SoundCloud in 2022 and currently heads up the Leeds Angels syndicate in West Yorkshire.

Drone deliveries, flying taxis and smarter emergency services could be a step closer to use in UK skies after the Government awarded almost £50 million to unlock growth in the drone and advanced air mobility sector.

Part of the £46.5 million investment will also see a crackdown on “faceless” drones, which can be used in suspicious or illegal activity, through the first bespoke drone identification system. The measures will make it easier for police to identify illegal or nuisance users and clear the way for legitimate drone operators.

Delivered through the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), the funding will also cut red tape and support the regulatory, digital and security foundations needed to bring drones and advanced air mobility – such as electric flying taxis – into more routine use across the UK.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

Shares in NCC Group plc are up 9% in trading today.

The listed Manchester firm – led by group CEO Mike Maddison – is seeing the benefits of a trading update issued late last week.

NCC is looking to become a pure-play global cybersecurity and resilience company by selling its escode business – set to complete shortly pending regulatory approvals – to a private equity company for £275m.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

EQT has increased its bid to almost £9 billion for Intertek Group plc.

Shares in the total quality assurance provider have jumped 7% today (writing at 3pm) to £51 after the Swedish private equity fund said it had submitted an offer for £58 per share in cash.

It follows the rejection of previous EQT proposals of £51.50 and £54 per share.

The latest bid represents a premium of 54% to the closing share price of £37.70 per share as at 9th April 2026 – the day before EQT submitted its initial proposal to FTSE 100 firm Intertek.

London-headquartered Intertek operates a network of more than 1,000 laboratories and offices in more than 100 countries.

The firm said today it would review the latest proposal.

Corvera has raised £3m to scale its platform which will allow brands to switch from manual operations to agentic supply chain management.

The London-founded startup – now based in San Francisco – was founded by Christopher Kong, who was named in the Forbes 30 Under 30 list last year.

Investors include 20VC, Y Combinator, Rebel Fund, Duke Capital Partners, and Multimodal Ventures.

Corvera participated in Y Combinator’s Winter 2026 cohort – selected from more than 30,000 applicants globally – where it also received backing from alumni founders.

Manchester-based battery specialist Cellerate has achieved a period of sustained growth with turnover increasing 60% following a £100,000 loan from NPIF.

The business is committed to accelerating the development of next-generation energy storage solutions globally.

It is investing in talent through PhD and postdoctoral research at the University of Manchester and contributing to a €20m Horizon Europe-funded Materials Acceleration Platform.

UK-based crop biostimulant venture SugaROx has secured a £2.5 million investment from Florida-based The Mosaic Company as part of its ongoing Series A funding round.

The investment will strengthen its path to commercialisation of a first-in-class crop biostimulant, which has supported more reliable field performance of crops including wheat and barley.

With the funding, the University of Oxford spin-out will expand R&D and significantly increase its field trials across key markets. It is targeting a UK product launch in 2027-2028 and EU and US expansion in 2028-2030.

Crimson Tide plc, the provider of the mpro5 operational compliance platform, has swung to profit in its full-year results.

For the year ended 30th April 2026, it recorded revenue of £5.9 million, the same as the previous year.

EBITDA for the period was £1.2m, compared to a loss of £100,000 in FY25.

Pathos Communications plc, a technology-enabled PR firm, has delivered strong growth following its £20m IPO.

Pathos, which has never raised institutional funding, raised more than £5m in December as it joined the London Stock Exchange’s junior AIM market.

The company was founded in 2019 by Omar Hamdi, who combined a background in computing, journalism and television presenting to democratise access to established news publications utilising a ‘pay-on-results’ model.

Hamdi, who worked for the BBC for years, is also an experienced stand-up comedian.

For the year ended 31st December 2025, it reported revenue of $13.1m, up 15%, while adjusted EBITDA was $2.9m, up 53%.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

Auction Technology Group plc has appointed a former managing director at Sky as CEO.

Duncan Painter will lead the group – which owns 10 marketplaces and connects auction houses with bidders globally – after current CEO John-Paul Savant agreed to stand down after a decade in the role.

The London-listed firm recently rejected a remarkable 12 takeover bids from its largest shareholder FitzWalter Capital, the latest for £491 million.

Painter founded data firm Clarity Blue in 2000 and sold it five years later to Experian for £85 million.

After working as global product leader for Experian, he served as MD of BSkyB’s customer intelligence unit Sky IQ for two and a half years before joining Ascential Plc as chief executive in 2011.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

RWS Holdings plc has agreed in principle a potential £40 million swoop for an IP protection tech company which was launched in 2024.

RWS, a global AI solutions company headquartered in Maidenhead, will pay £16.5m up front for London-based Obviously.

The £23.5m earnout is payable upon satisfaction of stretching EBITDA-related performance hurdles in the financial years ending 30th September 2027, 2028 and 2029.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

Vodafone is to take full ownership of VodafoneThree after agreeing a £4.3 billion deal to buy the 49% stake owned by CK Hutchison.

The £16.5bn merger of telecoms giants Vodafone and Three – the latter owned by CK Hutchison Group Telecom Holdings Limited – completed just last summer after it was given the green light by the Competition and Markets Authority in December 2024.

The deal, which followed a multi-billion-pound commitment to upgrade the merged company’s network across the UK – including £11bn to roll out 5G – gave Vodafone 51% of the combined entity.

Now Vodafone Group Plc will become sole owner via a cancellation of shares.

 

Author: Megan Stachini, Intrinsic MA

On the face of it, I had it all.

As a single mother at 26 I’d built up a multi-six-figure business from nothing – winning awards and plaudits in equal measure.

By the age of 30 I was generating millions of pounds when I gave birth to my second child – but in a moment I did not see coming, everything came crashing down around me: I stood on the side of a mountain, needing solace from everyone, and finally understood the cost of the path that had got me here.

Fast forward a few years and I’m now running three businesses, with a combined turnover of more than £1m collectively – and I’m about to have my third child – but this time it’s different.