Flavia Richardson, portfolio Manager for the London Co-Investment Fund , considers the 5 elements which classify an outperforming company.

Total lending facilitated by P2PFA platforms passed £10 billion during the third quarter of 2018 with the sector’s contribution to the UK economy approaching nearly £11 billion by the end of September – with the most pronounced growth continuing to be found in lending to small businesses.

The quarterly data – which for the first time includes statistics from CrowdProperty which joined the P2PFA in July – reveal that during 2018, platforms have lent more than £900 million each quarter, with the net lending flow of capital increasing between the second and third quarters of the year.

State Street Corporation has launched the latest findings from its Brexometer Index, a quarterly pulse survey of institutional investor sentiment on the economic impact of Brexit.

After appetite for UK assets rose to a record high in Q3 2018, the Q4 2018 survey has brought a slightly more muted response from investors, with those intending to increase their holdings falling to 15 percent from 21 percent. Consequently, the proportion of investors looking to decrease their holdings of UK assets remained unchanged at 20 percent in Q4.

Private equity experts at UK law firm Shoosmiths have advised nGAGE, one of the country’s biggest privately owned recruitment groups, on its acquisition of Henlow Recruitment Group.

nGAGE has invested in Henlow, a QuantTech recruitment business which operates in the UK, Europe, USA and Middle East, to enable it to grow its presence in international markets.

Brexit remains the largest concern for small businesses in 2018, as uncertainty remains over whether a deal of any sort will be reached by the March 2019 deadline, says GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

Uncertainty surrounding a no deal remains the biggest issue, with existing arrangements for exporters and importers under threat. Similarly, sectors, such as construction, are heavily reliant on migrant workers.

GlobalData’s 2018 UK SME Insurance Survey found that over a third of respondents (36.8%) stated they were either concerned or very concerned about Brexit. This indicates there is a sizeable market for insurers to include cover for losses as a direct result of Brexit in their business policies in the short term.

Capital Step has successfully funded the management buy-out of Brightwater, a leading independent recruitment consultancy with offices in Dublin, Cork and Belfast. The Company provides permanent, contract and executive search and selection services, with a focus on professional services. 

Cardiff-based online learning platform, Careercake, has secured over £300,000 in its latest funding round. The round has been led by existing investor the Development Bank of Wales, with additional funding from a consortium of angels including Sunnybarn Investments founded by entrepreneur Phil Buck.

Careercake aims to help organisations who want to help their staff build confidence in their careers and the challenges they may face in their working lives.

Following a year of steady growth that includes working with over 70 of Wales’ largest brands, Business News Wales has announced new investment from The Development Bank.

Led by Managing Director, Mark Powney, Business News Wales has secured a six figure investment to enable the business to recruit a new editor, sales team and expand on the services it currently offers to clients, including the ability to provide a new add-on product suite.

The deal was put together by Verde Corporate Finance (finance) and Greenaway Scott (legal). Both advisory businesses are part of the multi-discipline Greenaway Scott Group.

Leading law firm, Ashfords has advised Fluidly, an applied Artificial Intelligence (AI) company, on a recent £5million investment led by New York-based venture capital firm Nyca Partners.

AN INCUBATOR designed to help fledgling companies grow and thrive in County Durham has been launched at one of the region’s fastest growing business hubs.

Northern Powerhouse focused company NorthInvest has announced a new partnership with Leeds based consultancy Driad.

An online platform aimed at helping businesses improve employee referrals and reduce hiring costs has secured £275,000 from London-based investment fund, Fuel Ventures.  Real Links works with organisations to improve hiring through their employee network and is the second company to receive investment from Fuel Ventures since raising £20 million in its third round.