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Funding and finance
The latest technology funding news from around the world. Verdict covers all of the need-to-know funding news in technology, from key startup funding rounds to large-scale mergers and acquisitions. Company funding and deals are transforming the business landscape of technology, and Verdict is charting the changes.
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10 Jul
VR fitness startup FitXR scoops $7.5m in funding round
Virtual reality (VR) fitness startup FitXR has raised $7.5m in funding to expand its operations in Europe and North America and launch new VR fitness products.
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8 Jul
Will-writing startup Farewill raises £20m to tackle funeral poverty
Farewill, a startup that provides a digital platform for will writing and probate services, has raised £20m in its latest funding round to expand the business.
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7 Jul
Nucleai raises $6.5m to advance predictive oncology platform
Computational biology startup Nucleai has raised $6.5m in funding to advance its artificial intelligence (AI) platform, which analyses large datasets of tissue images to make predictions about how a patient will react to certain cancer treatments.
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6 Jul
UK startups less likely to seek government help than European counterparts
UK startups are less likely to accept government help than their French and German counterparts, according to a survey from Dealroom and LocalGlobe.
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1 Jul
Google returns to smart glasses with North acquisition
Google has announced that it has acquired smart glasses company North, in what appears to be a return to the space following the failed Google Glass project.
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29 Jun
Why now is a perfect opportunity to source funding for your tech startup
The pandemic, apart from being a human tragedy, has also caused major economic disruption, with countries facing soaring unemployment rates and stock markets hitting record lows.
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25 Jun
SoftBank managing partner: ‘We learned our lesson with WeWork’
SoftBank Vision Fund is using the case of its troubled investment in co-working giant WeWork as a case study for what not to do with other investors, according to managing partner Jeff Housenbold.
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25 Jun
Equity investment in UK tech SMEs soared 27% to £4bn in 2019
Equity investment in UK technology firms increased by 27% to £4bn in 2019, according to figures published today by British Business Bank.
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25 Jun
Jumbo Privacy raises $8m funding to return online privacy to users
Startup Jumbo Privacy has raised $8m in Series A funding to take on what it describes as “the tech industry’s privacy problem”.
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23 Jun
BP Ventures invests $5m in Satelytics to spot methane leaks
BP Ventures, the investment arm of BP, has invested $5m in geospatial analytics company Satelytics to help the oil and gas giant spot methane leaks.
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23 Jun
Unicorn Canva hits $6bn valuation as workplace collaboration demand grows
Canva, an Australian startup specialising in workplace collaboration tools, has announced that its valuation has almost doubled, from $3.2bn to $6bn, after it raised $60m in its latest funding round.
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18 Jun
Fly Ventures announces €53m fund to invest in European tech startups
Venture capital firm Fly Ventures has announced the creation of a €53m fund to invest in European startups within both the enterprise and deep tech spaces.
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17 Jun
Tory MP: Government should invest £15bn in UK SMEs
A Conservative MP has called for the UK government to invest £15bn in small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in exchange for shares.
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17 Jun
Oracle results see pandemic end growth, but cloud provides boost
Last night technology giant Oracle announced its full year and fourth quarter results for fiscal year 2020 and, to the surprise of few, the impact of the coronavirus was plain to see.
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15 Jun
Same-day grocery delivery app Buymie raises €5.8m for UK expansion
Buymie, a same-day grocery delivery startup that partners with retailers including Lidl and The Co-Op, has raised €5.8m to fund expansion plans and meet the increasing demand for home delivery accelerated by the coronavirus pandemic.
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11 Jun
Supplier-retailer platform Alkemics raises €21m to fund soaring pandemic demand
Alkemics, a French startup that connects retailers and suppliers via its omnichannel platform, has raised €21m in funding to help meet growing demand during the coronavirus pandemic.
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10 Jun
UK tech startups buck coronavirus slump, with funding nearing 2019 levels
Despite the severe economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic, UK tech startups have raised impressive levels of investment that come close to 2019 in the first part of the year, according to figures published today.
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4 Jun
Kinly acquires AVMI as the working world turns digital
Kinly, a video collaboration company based in the Netherlands has acquired UK-based AVMI, a key player in the audiovisual (AV) integration and managed services space.
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3 Jun
Zoom revenue soars 169% in one year, fuelled by remote working surge
Videoconferencing firm Zoom generated $328.2m in revenue during the first quarter of fiscal year 2021, marking a 169% year-over-year increase thanks to a global surge in remote working during the coronavirus pandemic.
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2 Jun
Thycotic acquires Onion ID to expand privileged access tools to the cloud
Cybersecurity firm Thycotic has acquired privilege access management platform Onion ID for an undisclosed figure to expand its privileged access tools to cloud-based applications.
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1 Jun
OTTO Motors raises $29m to meet growing demand for warehouse robots
Autonomous warehouse robot maker OTTO Motors has raised $29m in a Series C funding round to help meet the growing demand from manufacturers for mobile robots.
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29 May
Starling Bank scoops £40m in latest funding round, bringing total to £363m
Challenger bank Starling has raised £40m in its latest funding round, with the cash being used to fuel its growth and provide assistance to small business customers during the coronavirus pandemic.
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28 May
Poplar nets $2.1m funding as AR demand climbs amid lockdown
Augmented reality (AR) startup Poplar has closed a $2.1m seed funding round for its AR creative platform for brands, amid significant growth in consumer interest in the technology during lockdown.
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28 May
Pay-per-mile insurance startup By Miles sees surge in sales during lockdown
Despite current uncertainty caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, By Miles, an insurtech startup offering pay-per-mile insurance, has seen a surge in sales amid lockdown.
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26 May
Bolt raises €100m funding, boosting value to €1.7bn amid diversification push
Uber rival Bolt has seen its value climb to €1.7bn ($1.9m) in a funding round that is designed to help it diversify its offerings beyond ride-hailing.
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22 May
Nvidia’s robust Q1 earnings underscore its pandemic resilience
Chipmaker Nvidia reported revenue of $3.08bn for the first quarter of fiscal year 2021, surpassing expectations at a time when many firms are struggling to survive the pandemic.
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22 May
First-time investment in tech startups plummets during lockdown
Tech startups raising funds for the first time have seen a sharp fall in investment while lockdown measures have been in place.
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18 May
SoftBank reports $13bn loss as bad bets and pandemic bite
Japanese conglomerate SoftBank Group has reported a record $12.7bn annual loss as bad investments in the likes of WeWork were compounded by the coronavirus pandemic’s economic destruction.
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18 May
Fly Now Pay Later nets £35m to disrupt post-coronavirus travel industry
Fintech startup Fly Now Pay Later has announced that it has raised £35m in Series A equity and debt funding, as investors look for disruptive solutions to the ailing travel industry.
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14 May
SonarSource acquires RIPS Technologies to elevate code security market
SonarSource, a key player in the code quality and security industry, has acquired German startup RIPS Technologies, a developer of code security analysers, for an undisclosed amount.