Author: Jonathan Symcox

A former CFO at Bidstack when it was a listed company has been fined for insider dealing.

Bhavesh Hirani and Dipesh Kerai have been penalised by the Financial Conduct Authority for profiting from inside information about the then-listed firm.

In December 2021, Hirani was the interim CFO at Bidstack, a tech company that placed advertising inside video games. This meant he had access to inside information about a major upcoming deal between Bidstack and a large video game publisher.

Before it was announced to the public, Hirani passed this confidential information to Kerai, according to the FCA.

It said Hirani then opened a trading account in Kerai’s name and, with his help, bought 1.3 million Bidstack shares in advance of the announcement while in possession of inside information.

When the deal was made public, Bidstack’s share price rose by more than 125%. Kerai made more than £9,000 in profit, which the FCA has now required him to return as part of his penalty.

Hirani has been fined £56,000, while Kerai has been fined £52,731.

The UK Space Agency is launching Skills for Space, a new internship programme offering 50 paid placements across the UK space sector to give young people hands-on experience and industry exposure.

The new programme is a UK-wide initiative designed to give students their launchpad into the space sector through structured internships with the space industry.

Skills for Space will offer placements across a range of disciplines and locations, providing participants with practical experience in one of the UK’s fastest-growing industries.

The UK space sector already employs more than 55,000 people and generates £18.6 billion for the economy. Internships are one of many routes into a space career. The sector offers opportunities through apprenticeships, graduate schemes and direct entry roles across a range of areas.

Applications for internship candidates are now open, with placements being announced in May.

IG Design Group plc expects to report revenue at the high end of expectations, and above current market consensus, in its annual results.

The designer, innovator and manufacturer said for the financial year ending 31st March 2026, it expects revenue of $280-285 million.

Adjusted profit is also expected to exceed current market expectations.

Full-year net cash is expected to be c.$55-60m, which is $15-20m ahead of market expectations.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

The owners of Instagram and YouTube built ‘addiction machines’, a landmark trial has been told in California.

Mark Lanier told a judge and jury in Los Angeles that his client, known as ‘Kaley G.M.’, suffered from mental health issues as a child due to social media addiction.

“These companies built machines designed to addict the brains of children, and they did it on purpose,” he said in his opening address.

However lawyers for Meta – owner of Instagram – and YouTube told the jury that the then-minor’s addiction was caused by other issues in her life.

Attorney Paul Schmidt said she had suffered neglect, physical and verbal abuse, and bullying by her parents. Pointing to records of domestic violence in her family history, he said she had started seeing therapists when she was just three years old.

However Lanier said: “This case is about two of the richest corporations in history who have engineered addiction in children’s brains.

“I’m going to show you the addiction machine that they built, the internal documents that people normally don’t get to see, and emails from [Meta CEO] Mark Zuckerberg [in which he demanded more watch time] and YouTube executives.”

Lanier accused YouTube of taking advantage of busy parents looking for a “digital babysitting service”.

Meta and Google/YouTube maintain they are not responsible for content published by third parties on their platforms.

The six-week trial is the first of potentially many more set to take place around the US this year.

Owners of Snapchat and TikTok both settled with K.G.M. last month.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

Apple and Google will make changes to their app stores in the UK following intervention from the Competition and Markets Authority.

The tech giants says they will no longer give preferential treatment to their own apps.

They will also be transparent about how others are approved for sale.

Last year the CMA said Apple and Google had built an “effective duopoly” in the UK.

The FCA has begun legal proceedings against global crypto exchange HTX (formerly Huobi) for illegally promoting cryptoasset services to UK consumers.

Firms providing crypto products to UK consumers need to comply with rules which protect consumers from unfair and misleading marketing. Advertising cryptoassets on social media or websites without complying with these rules is a criminal offence.

The FCA previously warned about HTX’s illegal promotion of crypto services to UK consumers. However, it has continued to publish financial promotions in breach of these rules on its website and on social media platforms – including TikTok, X, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube – says the FCA.

“HTX operates an opaque organisational structure, hiding the identities of its owners and the operators of its website. Repeated attempts by the FCA to engage with HTX have been ignored,” it said. “Since issue of the proceedings, HTX has taken steps to restrict new UK customers from registering an account.

“However, existing UK users can still log in and access unlawful financial promotions, and HTX has given no assurance that the changes will be permanent. The FCA therefore remains concerned that the risk of ongoing breaches continues.”

Author: Jonathan Symcox

Audoo is changing how the music industry approaches royalty payments – and founder Ryan Edwards says this mission remains his core focus.

Edwards founded the business in 2018 to provide a solution to the challenges faced in public performance royalty data collection and payment distribution via its Audoo Audio Meter device and insights platform.

So impressive is the growth of the London firm – which counts legends including Sir Elton John, Sir Paul McCartney and ABBA’s Bjorn Ulvaeus among its investors – that it has topped our last two MediaTech 50 rankings.

However, despite substantial interest, he says they “do not have an exit strategy for the time being”.

“And that’s quite intentional,” he adds. “Audoo is a mission-led business and we’re focused on long-term impact rather than a quick exit.

“Of course, we’re consistently approached, and we explore every conversation, just as we do with funding. But the reality is we love working on this company. 

“We get to spend time with our heroes, solve a problem that’s affected creators for generations, and genuinely change how the industry works. That’s what motivates us, not an exit timeline.” 

The UK’s first AI-powered physiotherapy clinic, Flok Health, is expanding rapidly amidst a push from NHS England to scale digital provision across the health service.

The digital clinic provides NHS patients with same-day appointments for back pain via a smartphone app. In its first large-scale pilot in England last year, the clinic more than halved
waiting lists for back pain and reduced waiting times for all MSK conditions by 44% in less than 10 weeks.

Following this success, the AI clinic has been rolled out across 11 NHS areas including Cambridgeshire, Peterborough, Airedale, South Yorkshire (Doncaster, Barnsley, Rotherham, Sheffield), Northamptonshire, and three London boroughs.

This means more than 2.4m patients living in these areas are able to access round-the-clock digital physiotherapy, helping to slash waiting times and get people back to doing the things that matter to them.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

A co-founder at FinTech unicorn Zilch has raises £15 million for his latest venture ManageMy.

Sean O’Connor has teamed up with former ReMark Group CEO Stephen Collins to launch the InsurTech business, which was founded in the UK but is now based in the United States and has a presence in London.

It has now raised a Series B round of funding led by Ventura Capital, taking its total funding to $45m following a 2022 Series A.

A German tech multinational has chosen Sheffield startup TJ Digital Systems as its first UK partner.

CONTACT Software will roll out its end-to-end digital solutions for manufacturers in the UK. The firms say the strategic partnership combines CONTACT’s modular Elements platform with TJ Digital Systems’ deep knowledge of the UK manufacturing sector and proven expertise in systems integration, digital consultancy and performance delivery.

CONTACT Elements enables companies to merge data silos and integrate with enterprise systems such as ERP or CAD. It supports cloud deployment and provides AI capabilities to optimise processes all the way from product development to manufacturing and service.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

An energy transactions scaleup has raised £55 million in an oversubscribed Series B round led by Lightspeed Venture Partners.

The investment comes as tem surpasses $300m annualised gross transaction value and brings its total funding to $94m.

The round featured strategic follow-on participation from Hitachi Ventures, Voyager Ventures, Schroders Capital and Allianz alongside existing investors including AlbionVC, Atomico and Revent. 

Cybersecurity giant Sophos has acquired fellow UK-based firm Arco Cyber, a cybersecurity assurance company dedicated to helping organisations improve their security posture.

Sophos, owned by US private equity giant Thoma Bravo, said Arco Cyber will join as a dedicated team to advance Sophos CISO Advantage.

This is described as a set of capabilities designed to scale the knowledge, judgment and operating discipline of a world-class CISO to organisations with or without dedicated security leadership – combining agentic AI, integrated platforms and human expertise delivered in partnership with managed service providers (MSPs) and managed security service providers (MSSPs).

Arco’s technology and expertise will be integrated into Sophos Central, a platform delivering its wider ecosystem including advisory services, managed detection and response and partner-delivered services.

Digital media company KOMI Group has marked another year of exceptional growth for the three businesses in its portfolio: KOMI Publishing, KOMI Talent and ARK by KOMI.

Fuelled by KOMI Insights – the proprietary analytics platform which embeds data at the core of all of KOMI’s activity – KOMI unlocked a 77% increase in revenue year-on-year in 2025.

New AI capabilities also helped generate 44 billion views across its content portfolio in 2025.

ARK, KOMI’s content licensing business, acquired 5,320 videos last year, compared with 1,440 in 2024. More than tripling its video portfolio, ARK uses real-time data and audience insights to inform the acquisition and management of digital content. Through internal and external clients, ARK content was used 17,820 times in 2025 – from the BBC to other global outlets.

As well as revenue growth, headcount reached 139 in 2025, bringing 30 more people onboard.

Author: Chris Maguire

Chris Baguley has announced he’ll be leaving his role as corporate MD at Cheshire-based property lending giant Together at the end of the year.

Baguley, who joined Together in 2006, will be exploring a number of non-exec roles in early 2027.

He said: ”I’ve worked with the best people in the industry, some who have gone on to new ventures, but most who still remain as part of our incredible business.

“After the best 20 years in my career, I have taken the decision to retire from Together at the end of this year, to explore a number of non-exec roles in early 2027.“Not an easy decision as I absolutely love our business, together with the wonderful people I get to work alongside every day.

“I simply couldn’t be more proud of the business we have built in the last 20 years.”

Baguley, who previously worked for Manchester Building Society and Yorkshire Bank, joined Together to set up the bridging finance arm of our business.

Several years later he played an integral part in the creation of the company’s corporate team.

Together is a UK-wide specialist property lender with a loan book of £8bn and is a major employer in Stockport and Greater Manchester with more than 850 staff.

Author: Chris Maguire

Tributes have been paid to Abi Godfrey, a director of Grant Thornton’s North West corporate finance business, who has died at the age of 34

Godfrey, who led the company’s national pharma and life sciences sector, joined Grant Thornton in 2024 after 11 years at Deloitte.

Peter Terry, a partner at Grant Thornton UK and practice lead in the North West, said: “We are deeply saddened by the passing of our friend and colleague Abi Godfrey, director in our North West corporate finance business, who led our national pharma and life sciences sector.

“As a young female leader just breaking through to partner at Grant Thornton, she was an inspiration and motivation to many, both inside and outside the firm.

“She had so many wonderful qualities – we will miss her energy, fun, kindness and humility. We hold her family, friends and colleagues in our thoughts at this most difficult of times.”

Private equity-backed UK accountancy firm Gravita has appointed former BCLP global leader Lisa Mayhew as CEO.

The London firm has recently expanded to five UK offices and has seen more than 400% headcount growth since 2022. It is backed by PE firm Tenzing.

At BCLP, Mayhew served as firmwide managing partner and global co-chair, overseeing 32 international offices and growing revenue from $350m to $900m.

She succeeds interim CEO Heather Swanston, who will return to her role as chair of Gravita’s board.

YFM Equity Partners has urged Liverpool City Region tech founders to come forward as it has capital to invest.

The North-focused investor says Liverpool is producing a growing number of companies ready for their next phase of growth, particularly those using technology to drive scale, efficiency and international reach.

YFM, which invests £3m-£15m in growth-stage businesses, has backed Liverpool City Region success story Protein Works helping it grow from a small challenger brand into a global, multi-million-pound business.

London-based payments FinTech Navro has appointed Anna Andreeva as CFO, strengthening its leadership team as it scales internationally.

Andreeva joins from senior finance roles across payments and financial services, including Mews and Mollie, and will lead Navro’s financial strategy during its next phase of growth.

The appointment follows Navro’s recent launch of a ‘world-first’ statutory & tax payroll payments service, covering 95 countries.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

Eagle Eye Innovations, a provider of drone training, operating and consulting services, has secured investment from private equity investor LDC to support its expansion plans.

Headquartered in Lincoln and founded in 2013, EEI provides a variety of services to organisations requiring skilled, regulatory-compliant drone operators across multiple sectors including the built environment, utilities, infrastructure, agriculture, logistics, media, security and defence. 

LDC is backing EEI’s management team, led by founder and CEO Siôn Roberts, COO Dom Smith and CCO Alex Kasperczyk, as they expand the business in the UK and internationally.

Rob Clarke, previously CEO of CTC Aviation, will join as non-executive chairman, bringing extensive experience in commercial pilot operations and aviation operations consultancy, and Sir Chris Harper will remain on the board as non-executive director. 

UK personalised video startup Sendr has launched what it claims to be the world’s first personalised video at scale for eCommerce.

Early campaigns have delivered a 33% uplift in recovered abandoned-cart revenue compared to email, it says, using personalised videos that address shoppers by name, show the exact product they left behind and link straight back to checkout.

Initial use cases include influencer-led eCommerce brands such as Paris Fury and Pete Wicks, but it can be used by any brand or retailer across any stage of the eCommerce journey.

Sendr had previously been deployed by brands including the FT as an enterprise sales tool but given estimates that abandoned carts cost eCommerce retailers trillions each year, personalised video at scale is a breakthrough in eCommerce.

Having launched in 2025, Sendr has already raised £600,000 in pre-seed funding.