Cloud hosting provider Krystal has set out a blueprint for the future of businesses and the planet, as they announce their millionth tree has been planted way ahead of its 2022 goal. 

Research platform, Atheneum have announced they have secured a £110m growth capital funding round led by Guidepost Growth Equity. Existing investors also participated in the round including Crosslantic Capital Management, Michael Brehm, Vogel Communications Group, and the founding management team of Atheneum.

Lenders could see the time they spend processing the average loan reduce by more than 85% with the adoption of open banking technology, according to research from Yolt Technology Services (YTS), an open banking provider in Europe.

Instagram have announced the launch of its first Small Business Mentorship programme in the UK, in partnership with Small Business Britain. Aimed at supporting the country’s entrepreneurs and small businesses after an unprecedented 18 months, the mentorship programme will celebrate their creativity and resilience, as many have turned to Instagram to survive and thrive.  

WeWork has announced that WeWork On Demand, the company’s pay-as-you-go offering to access workspace and meeting rooms, is now available in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Singapore, and Australia. 

A new series shines a spotlight on 25 of the UK’s most innovative entrepreneurs and their ground-breaking businesses that are revolutionising the way we live. An entrepreneur who invented 3D printed personalised gummy vitamins tailored to people’s nutritional needs, lifestyles and goals is just one of the highlights of a new documentary featuring weird and wonderful ideas that will change the world.

Sure Valley Ventures, the venture capital firm that invests in deep technology and software startups, is pleased to announce that it has invested in a €3m funding round completed by Ambisense, the IoT and AI enabled environmental risk assessment business. BGF has led the round and, together with Sure Valley Ventures, existing investors Atlantic Bridge and Enterprise Ireland have participated.

Rocket Academy, a startup providing online coding courses, has announced it has raised $1.1m in pre-seed funding. The investment comes from a consortium of 50 marquee tech investors and venture capitalists including entrepreneurs Darius Cheung from 99.co, Marcus Tan from Carousell and Stanley Tang from DoorDash, former Singapore Ambassador to the UN Kishore Mahbubani, SEA tech leaders’ investment network XA Network, and VC firms Taurus Ventures and Hustle Fund.

Tech Nation have revealed new data on the Tech Nation Global Talent Visa, providing insights into the global talent pool working in the UK’s digital technology sector.

Play Well For Life (PWFL) are a for-purpose games studio that has developed an approach to the traditional board game. Merging the latest immersive technologies with the power of game-based learning, they offer a fun and engaging table-top game that stimulates social interactions and promotes mental wellbeing. The company is launching a crowdfunding campaign on September 28th to finance the next phase of development.

Inspirational entrepreneurs from across the UK are officially kicking off this year’s Small Business Saturday UK, as the campaign gets underway with its 100 day countdown. Aiming to support, celebrate and send out a ‘big thank you’ to small businesses for the important role they play within communities, particularly throughout the pandemic, the 2021 SmallBiz100 is showcasing a diverse range of independent businesses from across the country. 

SurePay, inventor and provider of Confirmation of Payee (CoP), has raised a €12.2m round led by Connected Capital with Iris Capital, joining Rabo Frontier Ventures to boost the company’s international expansion.

Fed up with restrictions, isolation, cancelled holidays, not being able to make plans - everyone has suffered through the pandemic, quite aside from those who have been hit by the virus itself.

AgTech startup Fieldin has completed a $30m Series B funding round, led by Fortissimo Capital, with the participation of Zeev Ventures, Icon Ventures, Luxembourg-based Maor Investments, and Akkadian ventures.

One of the UK’s most well regarded businesswomen, Angela De Souza and BBC presenter, Janey Lee Grace, will be coming together to celebrate the success of business women across the globe.

Sayata has raised $17m in series A funding that will drive expansion into several new insurance lines. Team8 Capital and Vertex Ventures led the round, who joined original investors Elron, Kamet, and OurCrowd.

Office workers feel less confident in their potential for progression at work than freelancers, according to new data from freelance platform, Fiverr. The COVID-19 pandemic has not been easy for workers, from furlough to job losses, the UK workforce has taken more than just a financial hit.

iwoca have launched its cash advance product on Funding Xchange for small business online sellers. iwoca will be using Open Banking to offer automated revenue-based repayments to e-commerce businesses with a business bank account on the marketplace.

Botify has announced that they have closed $55m in Series C funding led y InfraVia Growth, with participation from Bpifrance through its Large Venture fund, as well as existing investors Eurazeo and Ventech. Nicolas Herschtel from InfraVia and Antoine Izsak from Bpifrance Large Venture will join Botify’s Board of Directors.

38% of respondents have been approached over five times for a new job in the last year. That’s according to research from Talent Works, which surveyed software and government professionals to determine their opinions on different working policies and how often they are approached for new job roles. The survey also found that five percent have been approached more than ten times in the past year.