adCAPTCHA, a new specialist security verification platform, has launched with £1m funding to tackle the ‘bots epidemic' and protect organisations against cyber fraud. The London-based company, founded by industry veteran and entrepreneur Alfie Scarborough, equips organisations with the capability to identify and block bots through its sophisticated in-house developed patent-pending human verification technology.

Behind every successful entrepreneur is a good business mentor. That’s why, on National Mentoring Day (Sunday 27 October), Virgin StartUp is welcoming some of Britain’s most successful start-up founders into its growing network of business mentors. 

The 14th edition of the Global Green Finance Index (GGFI) evaluates green finance offerings from 97 financial centres. The GGFI serves as a valuable measure of the development of green finance for policy and investment decision-makers.

FRANCE: Aenitis Technologies, a pioneer in acoustic-based cell manipulation, has successfully closed its equity financing with the European Innovation Council Fund advised by the European Investment Bank, Quadrivium I fund managed by Seventure Partners, Mifani Invest, Stamos, Weaving Invest, a few business angels and the company founders, marking a significant milestone in the deeptech sector. The funding, secured in a two stage round, will drive the company's innovative acoustofluidic technology towards commercial launch and global expansion.

The SETsquared Partnership universities and leading regional investment firm QantX have announced plans

The number of private investors who say they consider ESG when investing has dropped for the third year in a row, according to the annual ESG Attitudes Tracker from the Association of Investment Companies (AIC).

Siloton, the Bristol-based health technology start-up, has secured £860,000 to progress the commercial roll-out of its groundbreaking eye imaging chip technology, which could help address the UK’s most common cause of sight loss.

Shift Bioscience is a biotech company using generative AI models to understand how activation of different genes can reverse the aging process. This research is a fundamental step forward in designing more effective drugs to treat age-related diseases. The company has announced that it has raised $16M (£12.5M) in Seed funding, led by BGF, with existing investors F-Prime Capital, Kindred Capital, and Jonathan Milner participating.

New independent research conducted on behalf of Handelsbanken Wealth & Asset Management reveals a significant year-on-year increase in the number of entrepreneurs looking to sell their business.

European intellectual property law firm, Mathys & Squire, has become an official partner of British Design Fund (BDF), an early-stage investment fund dedicated to supporting the growth of UK engineering and manufacturing start-ups.

Founded in London, British Design Fund backs product-focused start-up enterprises who are ready to scale-up and build thriving standout businesses. Alongside capital investment, BDF provides expert mentoring to support such companies to accelerate their growth plans.

Kaydiar, a Welsh business using pioneering technologies to create an innovative range of footcare products has received the backing of a group of angel investors, along with the Development Bank of Wales, the Welsh Government, University of Wales Trinity St David and Innovate UK.

A holistic metabolic disease management start-up, Dia Beta Labs Ltd has been named the overall winner of the 2024 INVENT Awards, after securing top spot of the brand new BioBreakthrough category.

Organised by science and technology hub Catalyst with headline partner Bank of Ireland UK, INVENT is the highlight event of the year for early-stage start-ups and aspiring entrepreneurs to showcase their innovations to a panel of expert judges.