Author: Jonathan Symcox

ElevenLabs has doubled its valuation to a mammoth $22 billion in a $300 million secondary share sale.

The firm, founded in London in 2022 by Polish entrepreneurs Mati Staniszewski and Piotr Dabkowski, develops AI tools that generate lifelike synthetic voices used in areas including customer service, text-to-speech and dubbing. 

It claims its technology is now used in daily operations at five of the world’s 10 largest tech companies, five of the 10 largest insurers, and four of the 10 largest telecoms firms.

The firm’s $22bn valuation is double the figure it achieved at Series D in February, while previous funding rounds last year valued it at $6.6bn and, before that, $3.3bn.

The latest round was led by long-term institutional investors Wellington and T. Rowe Price.

 

Author: Jonathan Symcox

iplicit, a finance system for the UK and Ireland mid-market, has opened a new office in Newcastle as it looks to take on legacy vendors such as Sage.

The firm, which provides an AI-powered cloud-native finance system, has grown rapidly since market launch in 2019, now serving over 50,000 daily users across 103 countries.

With new customer acquisition up by over 100% in the past 18 months, iplicit is expanding its commercial team with the creation of new sales roles and the opening of a second physical base in Newcastle, a growing technology talent hub that will give the company a direct pipeline of skilled talent to further strengthen its market leadership.

“iplicit entered the market eight years ago to fill a gap left open by legacy providers like Sage, which had got too comfortable neglecting and not investing in their mid-market customers. Today, we have become a dominant force in it,” said Lyndon Stickley, CEO.

“Customers are choosing us over alternative providers because our tech, our team and our partners are the best in the market. We have recruited over 40 members of staff directly from the legacy vendors in the UK, with almost 30 coming from Sage; we expect many more to follow in the coming years.

“Newcastle provides us with a direct line into some of the most experienced finance software resources in the country, across sales, marketing, services and support.”

 

Sheffield HealthTech SleepCogni has appointed two new non-executive directors.

The platform’s smart handheld device offer immediate relief to people who struggle to fall asleep.

Bryn Sage is the former CEO of Inhealthcare (acquired by Resmed), and Jason Brannan is former Deputy Director of the Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre at Sheffield Hallam University.

They will work closely with CEO Richard Mills as the business prepares for further NHS engagement and raises its next round of investment to commercialise SleepCogni.

The startup’s board is chaired by Colin Greene, a former Apple director for almost 15 years, who served as CEO of Apple Korea. He is now an operational partner at PXN Ventures.

British entrepreneur Ross Mason has raised $120 million to back founders building AI’s ‘engine room’ through his firm DIG Ventures.

DIG was launched in 2018 and is led by Mason, founder of enterprise integration company MuleSoft, which Salesforce acquired for $6.5 billion; Melissa Klinger, former UK sales lead at MuleSoft; and Rytis Vitkauskas, founder of YPlan and a former partner at Lightspeed Venture Partners.

The operator-led team brings first-hand experience of building, scaling and exiting software businesses. 

 

A family-owned online supplier of natural and organic cosmetic and skincare ingredients has ceased trading and been placed in administration.

Christopher Horner and Kevin Pinkerton, of restructuring and insolvency practice Business Rescue Expert, have been appointed joint administrators of Scotland-based Aromantic Limited.

The £1.1 million-turnover business, based on the Greshop Industrial Estate in Forres, traded via its own website and online platforms such as Amazon and Shopify – supplying oils, fragrances and other ingredients to customers creating their own creams, lotions, balms, toiletries and spa products.

The joint administrators have secured the sale to an unrelated party of the company’s assets, including its stock, websites and online platforms.

All 11 employees were made redundant immediately before the administration.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

eEnergy Group plc is seeking emergency funding following a ‘turbulent’ summer.

The company’s board has decided that it must source new capital to refinance the business, enable it to pay overdue creditors and ‘take advantage of the many opportunities which exist in its markets’.

It said: “The ongoing delays in receiving the Mace cash have severely impacted eEnergy’s ability to pay creditors as they fall due and are adversely impacting the company’s ability to source materials and services to continue current installations effectively.”

In connection with the proposed fundraising, the company has entered a Capital Access Window – a mechanism introduced recently in the updated AIM rules for companies.  

This is a voluntary pause to the trading of a company’s shares to make it easier for companies to reach a broader range of investors during a fundraise. During the window, the company and its advisers will seek to determine the level of investor demand and the appropriate size of the proposed fundraising.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

FinTech Zilch is reportedly preparing for a £1.5 billion London IPO – and it could list as early as next year.

The Financial Times, citing insiders familiar with the firm’s plans, claims that the consumer payments platform is lining up investment banks for a potential blockbuster listing.

They said that this month Zilch invited banks to pitch for roles on its planned flotation, although discussions remain in the early stages and may not come to fruition.

Should Europe’s fastest-growing unicorn opt for an IPO in its home city, it would be a huge boost to the London Stock Exchange after several take-private deals were announced.

A further blow to the LSE emerged over the weekend when another long-anticipated listing candidate, neobank Monzo, was reported to have entered discussions with Brazilian giant Nubank’s over a sale – as well as minority stake talks with private equity houses.

Regulators have provisionally green-lit the takeover of Southern Co-operative by the Co-operative Group.

The Competition and Markets Authority said earlier this month that the deal, agreed in April, could ‌reduce competition in some markets following a phase 1 investigation.

Now the CMA has proposed to accept a remedies package since offered by the Co-Op Group to address these competition concerns.

 

Glider Technology and Virtual Helpdesk have announced a strategic partnership that will help asset owners maintain accurate, trusted and auditable building information throughout the operational life of their estates.

The partnership brings together Glider’s Asset Intelligence discipline with VHD’s established facilities and asset management platform, creating a stronger link between asset information, planned and reactive maintenance, compliance activities and operational performance.

For asset owners, the result is greater confidence that critical building information remains current, accessible and verifiable long after construction handover, supporting compliance, safety and informed decision-making across the estate.

UK sustainable packaging startup, iBoxit Limited, has secured £230,000 in investment from the British Design Fund, as part of a wider £400,000 funding round, to support the development and commercial readiness of its plant‑based alternatives to expanded polystyrene (EPS).

iBoxit was founded by entrepreneur John Farley, who first identified the scale of EPS waste while trading Scottish salmon internationally. During a visit to a processing plant on Scotland’s west coast, John witnessed the large volume of single‑use EPS boxes being discarded daily and this prompted him to explore sustainable alternatives.

EPS is widely recognised as a persistent pollutant, with the majority of single‑use boxes ending up in landfill or contaminating marine environments. iBoxit is developing recyclable and biodegradable packaging systems designed to exceed the thermal and structural performance of EPS while reducing its environmental impact.

The company’s plant‑based biofoam materials biodegrade into an organic fertiliser, offering a circular alternative for sectors including seafood logistics, food processing, pharmaceuticals and industrial packaging.

Industry veterans David Lockie and Elona Mortimer-Zhika have launched Elevare Software Group with the acquisitions of Rubixx and Voicescape, two leading technology providers to UK landlords.

The deals mark Elevare’s entry into housing, the first of multiple sectors it plans to invest in, as the Government drives a decade of renewal for social and affordable housing.

Elevare combines long-term capital, hands-on expertise and an AI-first mindset to help ambitious software and tech-enabled services businesses scale while retaining their identity. Backed by mid-market private equity firm Livingbridge, Elevare draws on Lockie and Mortimer-Zhika’s track record of growing software businesses, including leading IRIS Software Group through its $4 billion recapitalisation, one of Europe’s largest technology buyouts at the time.

Rubixx and Voicescape will anchor a new housing technology ecosystem.

Rubixx’s cloud-native housing management platform helps social landlords keep homes safe, meet regulatory obligations and operate efficiently. Founded by Simon Reay, Adam Parker and Michelle Holland, the business is built on open APIs and updated every eight weeks. It supports 40 organisations covering approximately 100,000 properties.

Founded by John Doyle, Voicescape uses behavioural science, data analytics and automation to help landlords engage residents, identify vulnerable households, improve rent collection and evidence compliance. Trusted by more than 135 housing associations and local authorities, its platform covers around four million homes. The acquisition also gives Elevare an immediate foothold at the intersection of housing and public sector technology.

The transaction marks a successful exit for BGF, which backed Voicescape in 2023 and has reinvested alongside Elevare to support its next phase of growth.

Insurwave has announced an update and relaunch of its dynamic risk platform – bringing insurers, brokers and fleet owners onto one platform designed to make dynamic risk measurable as it moves.

The relaunch introduces four modules covering Aviation and Marine today. Track & Cover gives fleet owners a single, live view of every asset and its cover, with additional premiums quoted directly through the platform. Risk Intelligence turns a submission into a defensible risk score, drawing on real-time data analysis and historical data from specialist providers. Both modules are available today.

Portfolio Impact Analysis and Continuous Intelligence will follow later this year, enabling users to model how an individual risk affects aggregate exposure and continuously re-score bound business as events and risk conditions evolve.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

Stricken AdTech Mirriad may yet be saved despite spending five months in administration.

The listed virtual in-content advertising technology company, founded in 2015, failed to secure emergency funding early this summer while a US joint venture has failed to perform.

As a result, it did not publish its annual report and accounts for the year ended 31st December 2025; and this morning it confirmed that it would not publish results for the six months ended 30th June 2026.

However there could be light at the end of the tunnel as it revealed that it is currently in discussions with a third party regarding the terms of a possible investment in the company.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

Shareholders have approved Pinewood Technologies Group PLC’s £545 million sale to San Francisco private equity firm Ridgeview Partners.

The FTSE 250 firm is a Birmingham-headquartered tech provider to car dealerships and was formed out of the breakup of dealer group Pendragon. It is led by Florida-based Bill Berman.

The acquisition remains subject to the sanction of the UK High Court at a hearing which will be held on 7th October 2026. It is expected to become effective shortly thereafter.

Back in February its shares nosedived from around £4.50 to below £3 after a £575m takeover by another US-based PE house Apax Partners fell through.

Pinewood posted results this morning for the six months ended 30th June 2026.

Tech giant Figma has opened an expanded London office.

The platform, described as a ‘collaborative canvas for design, code, and AI’, is deepening its investment in one of its largest markets outside the United States. It says two-thirds of the FTSE 100 index use its platfom.

The office gives new life to restored Georgian and Victorian warehouses at Elder Yard on Norton Folgate, a part of the city that has been home to makers for hundreds of years.

“The UK has one of the deepest concentrations of design and product talent anywhere, from the banks and retailers building new digital products to the design studios shaping the future of online interaction,” said Daniel Barrett, Figma’s SVP of international. “We’re proud to expand our office in the heart of this incredible creative ecosystem.”

Vivify has strengthened its leadership team with the appointment of a key figure from JustGiving.

The Manchester company has appointed Mathew Lloyd as director of product. As a senior product manager at JustGiving, he helped shape digital products used by millions of people to support charities and causes around the world. 

Vivify helps schools and academy trusts to unlock the full value of their facilities through technology while making it easier for local communities to access sport and physical activity.

Founded in 2020 and backed by Arete and the William Currie Group, the company featured in third spot on this year’s EdTech 50 ranking.

 

Liverpool-founded sportswear brand Montirex has delivered another year of impressive growth, reporting turnover of £129.3 million for the year ending 31st December 2025.

The performance represents a 79% increase on the previous year (£72.3m). Profit before tax was £34.5m, up from £19.6m the previous year.

The firm said growth was driven by strong demand across consumer and wholesale channels, increasing sales across European markets and the continued expansion of its product offering. 

Founded by friends Daniel Yuen and Kieran Riddell-Austin in 2019, Montirex has built a loyal customer following by focusing on technical performance, product quality and accessible pricing. They featured on our inaugural Founder 250 list this year.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

Shares in Nubank dropped 10% today as investors were seemingly spooked by reports of a potential £10 billion swoop for UK counterpart Monzo.

Reports at the weekend claimed that Monzo is in talks over a sale of both its entire business – to Nubank, Latin America’s largest FinTech – and a minority stake to private equity, with a third less likely option being a further traditional equity fundraise.

However the potential cash-and-shares takeover offer from Nubank – worth between £8-10bn – does not seem to have gone down well with investors in the Brazil-headquartered firm.

Anthropic has warned that AI could ‘threaten humanity’ ahead of its $2 trillion IPO.

The Claude maker produced a 261-page prospectus before an expected launch on the public markets.

An astonishing 80 pages of the document were devoted to risk factors, with Anthropic saying advanced models could display self-preserving behaviour – including resisting shutdown, concealing or manipulating information and behaviour resembling blackmail.

Oxford Science Enterprises, the venture builder backing University of Oxford spinouts, has appointed Dr Jeffrey Moore as new senior partner and head of life sciences.

A scientist by training with a DPhil from Oxford, Dr Moore brings over two decades of BioTech venture capital leadership across North America and Europe.

Dr Moore joins OSE from Boston-based MP Healthcare Venture Management, where he served as president. He has a track record of backing early-stage university spinouts ahead of formal fundraising rounds, including investments in Covagen (acquired by Johnson & Johnson) and Trimtech Therapeutics, which completed a £36m fundraise in June 2026.