Sophie Winwood

"Funding Collapse sends investment in start-ups to six year low" The Times today covering the shocking stats that VenturePath uncovered, with our partner Beauhurst. Great quotes from supporters Michael Moore CEO, BVCA and Julian David CEO, techUK. * UK VC funding at Series A is -44% from last year, and worsening * Q3 24 is down a staggering 57% from Q2, itself down from Q1 * 9 in 10 seed funded startups cannot access Series A VC funding, the next 'rung on the funding ladder' * Just 32 future scaleup companies across the whole of the UK were able to access their first VC funding round in Q3...a 6 year low * Half a billion less capital is going in to UK scaleups at Series A, than just 2 years ago! As the UK scaleup funding gap widens, we are losing ground against other countries, at both startup stage (a position the UK worked hard to achieve, since 2011), and for scaleup support. OECD data: 13th in the world for scaleup support, and that's before Series A funding access dried up. I get that its confusing. Another report (BBB, Nations & Regions) released this week spoke of positive trends in private investment, stating "The data for Q2 2024 shows that investment value has continued to grow". Great, I love to see optimistic data. But under analysis that bundles venture with private equity (later stage), where a few megadeals skew the numbers. Otherwise the exact opposite is true. Our independent research here, for the UK ScaleUp Investment Mission, is laser beam focussed on Series A. The funding round where companies move from the c.1m startups launched each year, through the 2,179 that access seed funding, into the rarefied category of being recognised as future scaleups, attracting Series A funding (£2-10m). The UK venture landscape is currently funding just 248 pa of these companies, and declining. We've been sharing this urgent call for support with the new Government since the day after the election. I've personally met with several Ministers, and spoke to all the relevant Government departments. I will shamelessly repeat loudly what is at stake. UK scaleup funding at Series A has nearly halved in a year, and continues to decline steeply, more than halving in the last quarter. VenturePath developed The UK ScaleUp Investment Mission to convene the scaleup support ecosystem and £7bn of funders to help address this problem, to improve nationwide access to VC investment, and create more venture-backed successes. We have clear support, clear recommendations to reverse this decline in UK scaleup investment, and have made a clear ask of Government for participation in this, to ensure immediate action is taken to create the conditions for success for UK scaleups, ensuring the focus on growth isn't undermined by lack of capital, or equitable access to it. Government decision makers, we'd love your interest, to progress to action. HM Treasury: Rt Hon Rachel Reeves Spencer Livermore James Murray & CC Poppy Gustafsson (welcome to the debate).

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I couldn’t be prouder to be a Venture Partner at Isomer Capital (aka the best European FoF - at least for me) as we just announced the launch of our pioneering £100m secondaries fund. This fund is dedicated to acquiring stakes from LPs in various VC funds, tapping into a massive and largely unexplored market. 🌟 Key Highlights: - Focused Investment: Primarily targeting stakes in VC funds, with selective investments in private companies. - Robust Funding: Already over 20% funded, thanks to strong support from Nordic family offices and a German foundation. - Market Potential: With a growing number of private tech companies and a VC liquidity crunch, Europe's VC secondaries market is poised for rapid growth. - Track Record: This isn’t Isomer’s first foray into the secondaries market. As a firm we’ve done several secondaries deals with portfolio companies and VC firms, including early-stage VC Seedcamp (in 2021) and mobility giant Bolt (in 2023). - Expert Team: Welcoming the amazing Omolade (Rachel) A., formerly of Coller Capital, as a principal to lead this initiative. 💡 Investment Strategy: - 65-75% of the fund will buy "LP interest" stakes in VC funds. - 15-25% will be directed towards stakes in companies. - Up to 15% reserved for flexible investment opportunities. 📈 Looking Ahead: We're targeting returns of 2-3x, with significant distributions expected in the next 4-7 years. As one of the few players in this space, we're not just participating in the market—we're driving it forward. Read all about it here: https://lnkd.in/dc7sbC3G #VentureCapital #SecondariesFund #EuropeanVC

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Mountside - 400+ VC firms with fresh capital and UK focus https://lnkd.in/eERd3pHS Mountside Ventures keeps track of VC forms that recently raised a fund - they are most likely to be actively investing. The focus is mostly, but not exclusively, UK. ----- ♻️Like, Comment, Share Follow Startup Vencha for more, Stop Thinking & Start Doing.

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Mountside - 400+ VC firms with fresh capital and UK focus https://lnkd.in/eERd3pHS Mountside Ventures keeps track of VC forms that recently raised a fund - they are most likely to be actively investing. The focus is mostly, but not exclusively, UK. ----- ♻️Like, Comment, Share Follow Startup Vencha for more, Stop Thinking & Start Doing.

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London, UK based growth investor Copilot Capital recently launched a fund 💸 $200M fund seeded by an investment division of The Friedkin Group. 💡 Investing up to $40M in European software start-ups looking to scale and help founders drive further growth and profitability, with a specific focus on go-to-market strategy, internationalisation, acquisitions, and data & AI. 🌍 #Europe 📈 Alongside the fund’s launch, Copilot Capital has made its first investment into Danish-based Relesys, an all-in-one employee app for frontline workers in the retail industry. 💭 “There are 60,000 SaaS companies across Europe. Our goal is to identify businesses with market-leading products and proven revenue models and equip them with the capital and expertise to scale into software champions.” - John Messer, Copilot Capital’s co-founder 🗞️by Tech Funding News https://lnkd.in/dSjYtXgY 👏 For the #AudaciousInvestors unleashing innovation and empowering tomorrow🚀 John I Charlie I Charlie I Dave I Alba I Kitarack I Zerxis I Kemar I Zarosh I Hannah I Team Copilot … #growthcapital #pe #funds #startups #entrepreneurs #uk #funding #tech #entrepreneurship #technology #innovation #venture #london

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#Funding #OtherStuff Daring Capital invests €1.2 million in purpose-led founders in its first year of operation: Daring Capital, a UK impact investor network, has invested €1.2 million in purpose-driven startups during its first year. Launched in August 2023 by Jem Stein, the company has prioritised support for female founders, who received 95% of the capital, and 76% to Black and Racially minoritised founders. The investment aims to back overlooked entrepreneurs building […] The post Daring Capital invests €1.2 million in purpose-led founders in its first year of operation appeared first on EU-Startups.

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Extremely worrying data about VC funding in the UK. While we all understand that taxes must go up to pay for the mismanagement of the Covid crisis by the then administration - allied to economic headwinds caused by Brexit - surely we must also protect the parts of our economy that can stimulate jobs and growth...ie - early-stage business?! In my opinion the most impactful and simple way to do this would be to increase the SEIS allowance to £1m from £250k and make it applicable to companies upto 5 years from their initial trading date from the current 3 year limit. This will bring a huge amount of fresh capital into the early-stage investment market...especially if the govt increases CGT overall. If we don't protect early-stage innovation we will never get out of economic trouble. #earlystageinvestment #venturecapital #SEIS #funding

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Great insights from Adam Agius on what to consider when raising debt for a search fund buyout. Most relevant to the UK market, but a worthwhile read for all searchers. There's more debt capital keen to support search acquisitions than ever before, but approaching it naively can be very costly...

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ANNOUNCEMENT: We just launched our diversified fund investments feature on Mainshares 😲 Starting today, accredited investors can invest in SMB acquisitions managed by sophisticated investors via Mainshares I’ve been telling you all that we’re here to change the game of SMB investing for the better, and this is a huge step for us. Before, SMB investing was commonly done on a deal-by-deal basis, and depending on who you are, you may not have the time to spend parsing out every deal. Well now, investors on our platform have access to deals across a variety of industries, geographies, and deal structures in this (traditionally) inaccessible and fragmented asset class. Invest in ~20 SMBs, all with a single investment. Join the Mainshares train before we take off like a 🚀 Link below for diversified SMB investing 👇

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Great to see SIS Ventures make this list by TechRound https://lnkd.in/eDtRbggM A bit more about what we look for below. If you're a founder and these hit the mark 👇 then please get in touch Investment targets SIS Ventures is focused on high-impact, high-growth potential businesses our investee companies are innovation-led, often spun out of Scotland’s leading university innovation programmes. Portfolio companies are also carefully selected for their commitment to developing their environmental, equality and diversity, social impact and governance practices. SIS Ventures seeks to provide equity investment to: ✔ High growth potential with a global scale and intent to provide significant impact ✔ Focus on social and/or environmental impact, aligning with impact themes / at least one of the UN SDGs ✔ Product or service backed by defensible technology or proprietary know-how ✔ EIS or SEIS qualifying ✔ Low capital-intensive businesses ✔ Sector agnostic, but historically invested across Life Sciences, MedTech, Climate Tech, Circular Economy, Biotech ✔ Pre-seed – Series A ✔ Headquartered in Scotland

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What's your SER ratio? Last week I posted my blog on measuring your Salary Efficiency Ratio.... https://lnkd.in/eTcdVxvC I came up with the following for what good looks like: 👍 Good SER (< 0.5) the company is spending less than 50% of its Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) on employee compensation. Good for established businesses. 👌 Acceptable SER (0.5 to 0.8) Established scale-ups need to be towards the bottom end, but in fast-growing tech companies could be at the top for a while (just don't stay there)! 👎 Poor SER (>0.8): You're spending more than 80% of ARR on employee salaries: way too much whatever the stage. I would love to know whether you think I've got these ranges right? #salaryefficiencyratio, #venturecapital, #CFO

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Very proud to see the WVC:E dream team - Anisah Osman Britton MBE & Rachel Drapper - alongside long time friend and rockstar Ekaterina Gianelli on stage at TechBBQ discussing "Fixing the Talent Exodus in VC". Key Takeaways: 💰Impact of Consolidation on Culture and Talent: The ongoing consolidation in the VC industry is reshaping company culture, affecting morale, and influencing talent. 🚀Emerging Managers Aren’t Diversifying VC: Despite the rise of emerging managers, the industry remains largely homogenous, with many new managers still coming from the same traditional, non-diverse backgrounds. ⚠️Perceptions of Diversity as High Risk: Many in the VC industry continue to view diverse hires, investments, and business models as "high risk," "too time-consuming," or "too costly," perpetuating a cycle of exclusion. 🚼 Parental Leave Inequality: Inequities in parental leave policies are disproportionately affecting women in venture, creating additional barriers to progression. But there are funds, investors, LPs and organisations (like us!) that are trying to change this!

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📣 We’ve got a big ESG_VC event planned for Tuesday next week – featuring the latest updates to our measurement framework, news of our 2025 benchmarking with the British Private Equity & Venture Capital Association (BVCA), and an introduction to our new platform partners… 📣 On the afternoon of Tuesday 26 November, we’ll be gathering 200+ VCs for the latest update on the ESG_VC Measurement Framework – from what it covers to how it informs industry-leading research, and how you can now work with our accredited data collection partners. This will be our first event delivered in partnership with our cohort of platform partners: Apiday, Novata, and PortF. I’m excited to share with our members how these partners can support a big step up in your ESG initiatives. Join us for a jam-packed event that will feature: 🟢 An update from Suzi Gillespie of the BVCA on how you can take part in our 2025 research – we analysed ESG performance in c.600 VC-backed companies in 2024 and we’re looking to deliver an even more ambitious piece of research next year… 🟢 Insights from Emily Havers of Fidelity International Strategic Ventures on the updates that have been made to the framework and what it means for our members, their portfolio companies, and the broader ecosystem. 🟢 Perspectives from Emily Matthews of Oxford Science Enterprises and Nina Foote of Volution on how the ESG_VC Measurement Framework has supported their work on ESG. 🟢 Presentations from our platform partners: Edouard Audi of Apiday, Conor O'Laoire’Laoire of Novata, and Alex Lu of PortF. It’s going to be a good one so do register. Link to sign up in the comments! #ESG_VC #sustainability #venturecapital

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You can listen to my colleague Simon Menashy on the latest Operations Room podcast talking about what's going on in the early-stage funding ecosystem and the evolving role of the COO in fundraising 👇 #startups #VC #operations

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Lemon Raises £500K in Pre Seed Funding Round to Enable SMBs to Save Thousands on SaaS Spending Co-Founder and CEO of Lemon Matt Bird commented: “It’s clear that we’re going through a really interesting period for SMBs at the moment,. Taking into consideration the challenging economic landscape with funding drying up everywhere you turn, SMBs now need the tools and services to help them build better businesses as cost-efficiently as possible. With software being the third largest spend for an SMB, we really think Lemon can become a core part of how an SMB uses SaaS. https://lnkd.in/eHzkqN5v Koen Christiaens Edward Stevenson #fintech #finance #banking #paytech #payments #fintechnews #paymentsnews

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Bolt's crazy #investmentterms seem to be all over the news today. More details were just sourced from The Information and Erin Woo. Any #investor that signs up for this set of terms, and valuation, should have their heads examined! What do you think? #management #venturcapital #privatequity #capitalmarkets #fintech

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Tonight, Anna Sweetman is joining a Startup Fundraising & Investment Panel hosted by Entrepreneurs Collective alongside investors from Kavedon Kapital, 21x21 and MMC Ventures. The conversation will cover a variety of topics around navigating the UK's fundraising landscape, including: 💡 How to stand out to investors 💡 Key decision-making factors for investors 💡 What to expect at different stages of funding 💡 Navigating common fundraising challenges

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🚨 Funding News: Round Treasury Raises $2.1M Pre-Seed to Simplify Banking for Founders & CFOs! 💰 London-based Round Treasury is changing the way founders and CFOs manage their finances, making banking and treasury services easier and more efficient. Here’s what’s happening: Funding Highlights: • Funding Round: $2.1M Pre-Seed led by Passion Capital 💸, with contributions from Tiny VC, Ascension, Samos Investments, and Entrepreneur First. • Notable Investors: Industry leaders, including Darren Westlake (Crowdcube), Simon Taylor (11FS), Pranav Sood (Airwallex), and former execs from Stripe and Starling. 🌟 What Makes Round Treasury Unique: • All-in-One Platform: Integrates multibanking, treasury services, and savings accounts tailored for startups. 🏦 • Core Focus: Treasury solutions built to help startups manage cash flow efficiently and focus on growth. 🚀 What’s Next? With this funding, Round Treasury plans to: 1. Grow the team and expand product features, 2. Refine platform functionality based on early user feedback, and 3. Expand services across Europe 🌍. Led by CEO Pac O'Shea and co-founder Hayyaan Ahmad, Round Treasury is set to become the go-to financial solution for ambitious startups! 📢 Stay tuned to Future Techly for the latest updates on this groundbreaking initiative and the latest in tech and business! 💥 Source: FinSMEs ♻️ Repost if you think this insight is worth sharing!

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What exactly does a fund CFO do? Working in tandem with GPs, fund CFOs are responsible for just about everything outside of investing—and finding the right one is often crucial for success. Join Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) and Marie D. (venture capital CFO Marie Drez) in the latest episode of The Data Minute as they cover: ➡ the specificities of the fund CFO role ➡ why emerging managers should be making room in their budgets for one ➡ how Carta’s Fund Formation product can help They’ll also dive into Marie’s own experiences, including important takeaways from the SVB crisis and why, in the world of AI, great CFOs are more important than ever. Listen now for more insights 🎧

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