The first two businesses to raise money on Obu – the angel investment platform supporting female founders – have closed their fundraising campaigns.
Moody Month, a revolutionary hormone-tracking app, and ProperPlan, which is developing a world-first, AI-powered product launch app, raised £105,000 and £193,000 respectively on the platform.
Laura Phillips, founder of ProperPlan, raised a total of £300,000 in three weeks after a whirlwind raise.
Obu was launched this July to address the inequality faced by women in business, and to create a more equal startup ecosystem.
The platform aims to increase the level of investment in female-founded businesses from 2 per cent and to increase the number of women angel investors from 14 per cent to 30 per cent.
Obu’s CEO and co-founder Sarah King said: “To support not one but two incredible female founders on their fundraising journey is a great privilege.
“It’s so rewarding to see these truly disruptive businesses secure investment from angels.
“The closing of these rounds and knowing it’ll support the next stage of growth for these businesses demonstrates the genuine ability of angel investors to shape the types of problems that get solved in the world – proving that more diverse angels really does mean more diverse innovation.”
Laura Phillips, founder and CEO of ProperPlan: “Obu inspired my own investment journey from the very beginning. It’s true that you can’t be what you can’t see. Obu is setting out to create a more equal and diverse world – not only for the entrepreneurs who get funded but for the angels who fund us.”
Amy Thomson, co-founder and CEO Moody Month: “We chose to raise exclusively with Obu because we believe in the work they do, and the mission they’re on.
“Getting behind their mission brought a whole new dimension to Moody’s raise, enabling us to empower women not just through our tech, but through the choices we make for how we grow our business.”
Within its online platform, Obu connects female founders with investors, facilitates investments, and manages the legal and contracting associated with closing a funding round.
Investors and individuals wanting to support female founders and businesses that traditionally may have been overlooked, they can turn to Obu as a platform aligned with their personal values while playing a part in addressing gender inequality.
Obu was co-founded by Sarah King and Claire Dunn and is open to all eligible investors who support its mission to close the gender investment gap.
It focuses on female-founded businesses in the FinTech, EdTech, FemTech, AI, food and drink, health and beauty sectors, who are seeking up to £250,000 via the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS).