Midlands-based travel demand management platform You. Smart. Thing. (YST) has secured £1.2 million in funding, from the West Midlands Co-Investment Fund (WMCO). The regional fund is managed by Midven, part of Future Planet Capital, and has invested alongside angel investors including Giles Fearnley, ex-MD at First Bus, Will Phillipson ex-COO Citymapper, Venture Innovators’ Jeremy Acklam, and green energy company, Ecotricity.

Semiconductor manufacturer Kubos is set to bring its revolutionary new compound semiconductor material to South Wales, with a £670,000 equity investment from the Development Bank of Wales.  The funding wsa part of a wider £2.2 million round from investors including Dr Drew Nelson, founder of IQE plc, Angels Invest Wales Co-Investment Fund and business angels, plus a £700,000 grant from Innovate UK.

Angel Academe has made its 50th investment in PreActiv, an innovative platform that optimises patients before surgery, using technology to create individualised prehabilitation programmes. 

Where You At ("WYA") an app which uses indoor mapping and offline bluetooth positioning to allow users to precisely locate and contact friends in spaces without connection, has raised funding from Angel Academe.

The Scaleup Landing Pad Hamburg - an initiative launched by the Hamburg Invest business development organisation and the City of Hamburg - has selected five highly promising high-growth companies from a pool of international applicants. These green-tech pioneers include Allegro Energy from Australia, BANF from South Korea, Heatcube - Kyoto Group from Norway, Polymertal from Israel and Tsubame

Superfy, the AI-powered social networking platform catering to Gen Z, has raised a further $2.2m in its latest funding round from a number of high profile angel investors.  This latest funding brings its total funding to $6.7m. Superfy’s AI instantly connects users with the most relevant people so they can discuss anything on their mind – get real-time responses, tips, and more, in a live chat.

Firenze, a Manchester-based fintech has raised £750K at a valuation of £3.75 million in a pre-seed angel round. The investment will be used to accelerate its mission to democratise access to Lombard lending. It will allow Firenze to continue its team growth and start onboarding the first wealth managers and platforms.

Dubai, UAE - Lune, a leading Emirati Financial Data Analytics company, has successfully concluded a seed funding round of $1.5 million. This investment will fuel further expansion of Lune's MENA operations and solidify their position as a leader in data-driven financial solutions.

The Estonian Business Angel Network (EstBAN) has published its annual report for 2023, showing that members invested €13.32m into startup companies during the past year.

The Finnish Business Angels Network (FiBAN) reports a significant decline in angel investments in Finnish startups during 2023, with funding dropping from €37 million to €26 million compared to the previous year. This 30% decrease reflects the cautious stance adopted by investors amidst uncertain financial markets.

The Czech startup landscape stands a significant chance of strengthening this year, as investments in technology companies are expected to increase markedly following a leaner last year, says a report from investment group DEPO Ventures, which is constructing an international syndicate of angel investors in addition to managing angel funds.

Rubedo Life Sciences Closes $40M Series A Financing Led by Khosla Ventures and Ahren Innovation Capital. Series A financing to advance clinical development of lead candidate RLS-1496 into Phase 1 studies this year in chronic atopic dermatitis and chronic psoriasis. Financing will also advance respiratory program, recipient of a substantial CIRM grant last year, to development candidate nomination for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.