Ionech, an Oxford-based technology company developing a way to generate electricity from ambient air, has secured £2 million in seed funding.

The business says its system uses high-voltage pulses to create superoxide ions and convert thermal energy from the air into usable power.

It plans to apply the technology to energy-hungry equipment such as commercial fridges, air conditioning and ventilation units, which it says account for more than a quarter of global energy use.

The funding, led by Elbow Beach alongside an Innovate UK grant, will help Ionech scale up and run real-world pilot projects, including work with Coca-Cola Europacific Partners to cut the footprint of drinks coolers.

Blackburn-based eCommerce and logistics specialist Staci has won a new contract with Waldencast Brands, the beauty and wellness group behind Glaze, Whind and Coats.

The move comes as the firm looks to scale across the UK and Europe.

The partnership, which started in August 2025, will see Staci provide fulfilment support alongside real-time reporting and dashboards to help improve stock visibility and reduce storage costs.

It will also work with Waldencast’s team on forecasting for product launches and promotional activity, including campaigns driven by TikTok and other social channels, to help keep deliveries on track.

CTI Digital has appointed Vivian Spencer as its new CTO as the Manchester-based agency looks to support further growth.

Spencer brings more than 20 years’ industry experience and joins from senior roles at Pitchfire and Creation Agency, where he worked on building scalable systems and driving innovation.

In his new role, he will shape CTI Digital’s technology roadmap, helping to link new tech with the agency’s wider commercial priorities.

His appointment also comes as the business sees growing demand for AI-focused services, including strategic consulting and new areas such as GEO and agentic workflows.

Basingstoke-based Genus has reported a strong first half of FY26, with adjusted profit before tax is expected to come in at around £50 million, ahead of its own expectations. 

Including a £5.6m milestone payment linked to its China porcine joint venture, adjusted profit before tax for the six months to 31st December 2025 is expected to be around £55.6m. 

The listed animal genetics group said it now expects full-year FY26 adjusted profit before tax (excluding the milestone payment) to be moderately above the top end of current market forecasts. 

The update comes after the joint venture received regulatory approval in December, triggering the final $7.5m payment from partner BCA.

ITM Power has appointed Jürgen Nowicki as non-executive chair.

He replaces Sir Roger Bone, who has retired from the position after serving as chair since 2019 and as a non-executive director since 2014.

The company credited Bone with guiding the company’s shift from a development-stage business into an established commercial player in the electrolyser market, alongside strengthening governance.

CEO Dennis Schulz said Nowicki’s sector experience will support the board as it focuses on operational delivery and executing its growth strategy.

THG has appointed independent non-executive director Milyae Park as chair of its sustainability committee.

She will replace senior independent director Sue Farr, who will remain on the committee as a member.

Park has been with the Manchester firm for just over a year and has previously served as chair of the subsidiary board of the London Museum.

She led womenswear business Tricouni from 2014-2016 and brings retail experience from key roles at M&S and Tesco.

The appointment comes just days after THG reported positive Q4 results but saw its share price dip.

The BBC is reportedly preparing to make programmes specifically for YouTube for the first time, as it looks to boost revenues as audiences shift to streaming platforms.

According to the Financial Times, the tailored content would later also appear on BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds, with an announcement potentially coming as early as next week.

The move is expected to focus on younger viewers and allow the broadcasting giant to earn more by running advertising on the shows outside the UK.

The agreement would cover the BBC’s domestic public service arm and formalise its existing relationship with BBC Studios.

Author: Chris Maguire

Student living platform Housr has stepped up its US expansion plans by announcing two new office openings in New York and Chicago.

It follows last year’s news that the Manchester-based startup had raised £7.5m in private financing to accelerate its product innovation and expansion across the UK and US.

The round included backing from Ashta Capital and Juniper Equity, two Texas-based investment firms known for supporting high-growth operating companies.

Housr, which grew revenues by 186 per cent year-on-year, is on a mission to modernise student housing through technology.

Founded in 2021 by Harry Panter and Ben Clayton while studying at the University of Manchester, the company’s free-to-use app has become a digital ecosystem for student life, offering rentals, local deals, roommate-matching and ride-sharing, all in one place.

Co-founder Harry Panter said: “2026 is the year Housr becomes a market leader in the US, while continuing aggressive growth in the UK and entering new European markets.

“At the start of Q2, I’ll be relocating to New York. This is a deliberate move that reflects our ambition and long-term commitment to building the most important rental and living platform in the US.”

Author: Patrick Killeen

Sportsbook and casino operator Midnite has raised $35 million (£26.1m) in fresh funding as it ramps up plans to become a “tier-1” challenger brand.

The London-based firm’s Series C round was led by Raine Partners IV, the growth equity fund of The Raine Group, a global investment and advisory business focused on sectors including gaming, sport, tech and entertainment.

Existing investors Play Ventures, Discerning Capital, Makers Fund and Big Bets also backed the round, taking Midnite’s total equity funding to more than $75m. 

The company also secured a $100m credit facility earlier this year to support marketing and wider growth initiatives.

It said the new capital will be used to scale operations, speed up development of its in-house sportsbook and casino products, as well as support international expansion. 

A large portion of the investment will go into hiring, with the business planning to further build out its product and engineering functions.

Author: Patrick Killeen

Red tape that is holding back robotics and defence innovation in the UK is set to be reviewed under an expanded remit for the government’s Regulatory Innovation Office (RIO).

The watchdog, launched in October 2024, has named robotics and defence as new priority areas as it looks to tackle regulation it believes is outdated or duplicative and is slowing emerging technologies from reaching the market.

The RIO said it has already spoken to more than 150 businesses and is working on reforms across sectors worth more than £100 billion. 

Sulnox has secured a new patent in Vietnam as it continues to expand across Asia.

The London-based EnviroTech develops fuel conditioners and emulsification technology designed to cut fuel costs and reduce emissions without requiring upfront capex, across marine fuels and blended diesel and petrol.

It said Vietnam is a key growth market, supported by its trade links with hubs such as Singapore and proximity to Indonesia and China.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

The Sunday Times has published its second annual league table of Britain’s fastest-growing companies in both software and hardware.

The tables rank private UK-headquartered tech companies on the growth in their annual revenues, measured over three years.

The 2026 Sunday Times 100 Tech is led by Abound, a lending FinTech company which just yesterday completed its latest acquisition to move into mortgages.

Founded in 2020 by Michelle He and Gerald Chappell, Abound uses AI to help borrowers bypass traditional lending through its technology-driven loans platform. 

The company now employs 120 people and has a small office based in Bermondsey, London. Over the past three years, it has grown by an impressive 490% a year, generating £66.8 million in sales last year.

Revolut, Mastercard and Visa have failed in a High Court challenge to stop the UK’s payments regulator from consulting on a cap for overseas card fees.

The firms launched a judicial review after the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) confirmed plans in December 2024 to explore limits on interchange charges.

Those fees have risen sharply since Brexit, with debit card rates increasing from 0.2% to 1.15% and credit card fees from 0.3% to 1.5%.

Judge John Cavanagh ruled that the regulator, now part of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), does have the powers to pursue the proposed price cap and threw out the case.

Author: Patrick Killeen

The BBC has confirmed that hit show Dragons’ Den will return later this month for its 23rd series.

Four guest investors will join long-standing Dragons  Peter Jones, Deborah Meaden, Touker Suleyman and Steven Bartlett as the programme recommences on 29th January.

Gary Neville will return as a guest investor after previously featuring on the programme in 2024. 

He will be joined by three first-time guest Dragons, who have been revealed as rapper Tinie Tempah, Tropic Skincare founder Susie Ma and REFY CEO Jenna Meek.

Seven new episodes have been scheduled initially and further instalments are due later in the year.

Ofcom said Snapchat has “materially improved its illegal content risk assessment” to better protect UK users, particularly children.

The regulator raised concerns that Snapchat’s original assessment underestimated how likely illegal activity was to occur on the platform and warned it was considering enforcement action.

The social media giant initially submitted revisions that still fell short, before committing to a full overhaul, including a complete reassessment of risk levels across all identified harms.

Ofcom has now placed the company into a formal “compliance remediation” process, giving it a final chance to meet requirements.

Lower-mid market tech-focused private equity fund WestBridge III has secured a £34 million commitment from the British Business Bank as it targets high-growth UK technology businesses.

With offices in London, Manchester and Cardiff, the firm invests between £10m and £40m in firms across the country, with a stated focus on backing companies outside of London and the South East.

The funding supports the final close of WestBridge III at its £225m hard cap, following earlier backing for the firm’s WestBridge II fund in 2017.

The commitment will help it continue supporting ambitious founders and management teams through its next stage of growth.

London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) has signed an expanded deal with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to move its high-speed financial data operations to the cloud.

The partnership aims to give banks and other financial institutions faster, more flexible access to LSEG’s market data, which spans over 100 million instruments sourced from more than 575 exchanges and trading venues worldwide.

It builds on LSEG’s wider cloud transformation strategy, which has also included a strategic partnership with Microsoft.

Leicestershire-based The Access Group has agreed to acquire MaxOptra, a cloud-based route optimisation and delivery management platform.

MaxOptra, headquartered in London, supports more than 450 customers, helping optimise over 6,000 vehicles a day across sectors including food and drink, construction, logistics and waste management.

The deal strengthens Access’s ERP Specialised Supply Chain & Logistics portfolio, adding route planning and delivery management tools that customers have identified as a priority.

MaxOptra’s platform uses AI-driven routing alongside real-time tracking, electronic proof of delivery and automated customer updates to help fleet operators cut costs and improve on-time performance.

Author: Patrick Killeen

Shares in CAB Payments have risen by more than 13% to 75.11p today after the B2B FX and payments provider said it expects to deliver a stronger-than-expected performance for FY25.

The company, which specialises in helping businesses move money into and out of emerging markets, is now forecasting total income of around £119 million for 2025.

That would be well ahead of market expectations, where consensus had been pointing to £110.1m.

The London-based business also expects adjusted EBITDA to come in slightly above the consensus range, after analysts had pencilled in between £28.3m and £33.8m, compared to £30.8m in 2024.

Author: Patrick Killeen

Oxford Biomedica has confirmed it has received an unsolicited takeover approach from private equity giant EQT, sending shares up by more than 15% to 928p today. 

The life sciences group is now valued at around £1.13 billion, with its share price up 131.88% over the past year.

In a statement to the market, the MedTech said it is in preliminary discussions with EQT over a possible cash offer for the entire issued and to be issued share capital of the company. 

However, it added that there is no certainty a firm offer will be made, or on what terms, and advised shareholders to take no action at this stage.