More than half of consumers say that loyalty programs are the key reason they choose specific retailers and brands. Brands love these programs because they help fuel customer retention and also provide valuable data. Yet, consumers have very little power over how these programs work and how to best utilize their loyalty accruals. For example, you may have significant points on one airline but another airline is offering the same route for significantly cheaper, leaving you in a dilemma to go for the points or save the cash. Swapi is a mobile wallet and loyalty points management platform that allows users to seamlessly swap between loyalty points between different brand’s loyalty programs and spend these points through the app’s marketplace that’s integrated directly with the brands. As there’s been a growing movement toward decentralisation, Swapi empowers consumers to take charge of their consumer spend and loyalty earnings by providing unparalleled flexibility. Making that decision between loyalty and savings just got easier. London TechWatch caught up with Founder and CEO Pete Howroyd to learn more about the experience of launching the business during the pandemic, the upcoming formal launch of the app, the company’s recent funding round, and much, much more…
Angel/Seed
Bea Fertility Raises $1M for its At-Home Subscription Fertility Treatment Service
The global fertility market is estimated to grow to ~$50B by 2030 with nearly 1/8 couples having trouble conceiving. Advances in technology are making reproductive health options more accessible from both a convenience and affordability standpoint. Bea Fertility is a healthcare startup offering at-home fertility treatments via a kit offered through subscription. Traditional fertility options like IVF need to be done at a fertility center and come at exorbitant cost. Bea uses ICI, a technique that’s similarly effective to other treatment options, but only costs £300/month. The company is focused on supporting the entire conception journey and offers ovulation tracking, guidance, and an expert network. Presently pre-launch, Bea is in the process of gaining regulatory approval and expects to launch by the end of the year. London TechWatch caught up with CEO and Cofounder Tess Cosad to learn more about the importance of making fertility treatments accessible, the company’s upcoming launch, strategic plans, and recent round of funding from Calm/Storm VC and QVentures.
Osu Raises £2.25M for its Payment Management App for Self Employed Individuals and Freelancers
Self-employed workers tend to sporadic income streams and managing cash flow is critical. With the advent of Open Banking, there are new opportunities to help these individuals optimize their balance sheets. Osu is a payment app built for the needs of the self-employed. The app lets businesses collect instant payments, invoice, and generate payment reminders all without any transaction fees. The company only charges a simple, flat monthly fee without the need for any hardware; Osu’s platform is able to collect payments via SMS. London TechWatch caught up with CEO and Cofounder Noam Nevo to learn more about the opportunity to support self-employed individuals with automation and smart solutions, the company’s future plans, and recent round of funding from investors that include Creandum, Ada Ventures, Charles Delingpole, Will Neale, and Michael Pennington.
RankedRight Raises $500K to Help Organizatons Prioritise Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities
According to IBM, the average cost of a data breach is $4M. The importance of addressing vulnerabilities is critical but 53% of companies spend more time navigating the vulnerabilities rather than fixing them. RankedRight has built a triage platform that allows users to establish pre-set rules that can automate ranking the various vulnerabilities threats a company is facing, allowing them to tackle the most critical issues. The platform integrates vulnerability data and scanners from multiple sources to ensure that RankedRight can work in tandem with an organization’s existing cybersecurity infrastructure. The company’s launch plan costs £1500/mo.
London TechWatch caught up with CEO Thomas MacKenzie to learn more about the inspiration about the business, the state of the cybersecurity vulnerability market, and the company’s recent round of funding from investors that include John Yeo, former CEO at Codebashing, Armando Romeo, Founder and former CEO of eLearnSecurity, and John Griffin who was previously Head of Games, EMEA at Amazon Web Services.
The February 2021 London Venture Capital Funding Report
After setting records in January, startup funding down 71.8% MOM and 51.3% YOY in February.
Hoxton Farms Raises £2.7M to Make Meat Alternatives Indistinguishable by Using Animal Fat Made in a Lab
Meat analogues are meat-like substances usually made from plants. These substitutes are growing in popularity thanks to brands like Impossible Burger and Beyond Meat. However, for meat enthusiasts, these substitutes often lack the feel, look, and taste of the real thing. Hoxton Farms is looking to produce real animal fat without harming animals for use in meat alternatives by extracting fat cells. Using cultivated fats has the potential to relieve pressure on the environment caused by factory farms including helping with antibiotic resistance and climate change. The company uses machine learning and mathematical modeling to build its cultured fats with plans to build a scalable prototype within the next 18 months. London TechWatch caught up with Cofounder Ed Steele to learn more about the work to make meat alternatives viable at scale, the company’s future plans, and recent round of funding from investors that include Founders Fund, BACKED VC, Presight Capital, CPT Capital, Sustainable Food Ventures, and others.
Ember Raises £1.6M to Empower Small Businesses with Automated Accounting and Tax Solutions
Small business owners are often the jacks and jills of all trades, especially when teams are small and operations are lean. But for many businesses, the time spent handling administrative functions could be better spent building the business. Ember is an accounting and tax platform that streamlines these functions with automation, freeing up valuable time. The platform uses machine learn and has integrated open banking so that businesses can manage all aspects of taxes and accounting from a single platform. Users are able to view the business’s finances in real-time, get support from qualified experts, and optimize, pay, and file taxes with HMRC, which recently made it possible to file digitally. London TechWatch caught up with Cofounder and CEO Aaron Shaw to learn more about the company’s progress since we covered their pre-seed round in late 2019, fundraising during the pandemic, the company’s latest funding round from investors that include Anthemis, Spring Ventures, and Innovation Nest, and much, much more…
Swapp Raises $7M for its End-to-End Construction Planning Platform Powered by AI
The use of technology is reshaping the construction industry today just as the introduction of specialized tools did in the past. With so many variables and moving parts in a typical construction, there’s always a risk for delays and these delays can be costly. Swapp is the AI-powered software solution that provides a centralized platform designed for the construction industry to create, manage and refine an end-to-end construction plan as circumstances change. Typical planning for a project can take anywhere between 9 months to a year; Swapp brings this down to a month. London TechWatch caught up with CEO, Cofounder, and serial entrepreneur Eitan Tsarfati to learn more about how his work at Autodesk Israel inspired this venture, the company’s future plans, and latest round of funding led by Point72 Ventures and Entrée Capital.
My Bespoke Room Raises £700K to Make Interior Design Accessible
As folks spent more time at home as a result of the pandemic and with fewer places to spend discretionary income, homeowners in the UK have spent £55b on home renovations since March. My Bespoke Room offers a technology-powered, personalized interior design service for a flat fee to anyone looking to hire a professional to spruce up their homes. It takes less than 15 minutes to complete your design brief and then you are connected with a designer based on your preferences and tastes. The service starts at a very affordable £195 per room. London TechWatch caught up with Cofounder Diana Greenlaugh to learn more about the inspiration for the business, how the lockdown has bolstered interest in interior design, and the company’s recent funding round.
The December 2020 London Venture Capital Funding Report
Funding down 28.7% MOM as much of the nation under lockdown in December. Find out where it went… Aggregate statistics for all London funding deals by stage of funding (Early, Series A, Series B, and Late) including mention of notable rounds for December 2020.