We had an idea, and we knew the idea was good - but neither of us had ever run a company or raised funding before. Still, the mobile advertising industry was screaming for innovation, and we were convinced that we could bring that innovation.

Every week at Digital Catapult we meet several early-stage companies who come to our FutureScope investment team office for support with their venture capital (VC) fundraising plans.

Gen Z is a generation which values entrepreneurship and is eager to make its mark on the world. According to a recent report from GlobalWebIndex, 74% of Gen Z’ers want to start their own business, and 62% believe they will do so in the next five years.

Ask any early-stage business owner and they will tell you that getting funding to scale can be tough. Very tough. All will tell you that it takes much more time and effort and takes much longer to complete than they had expected. And all will tell you that raising finance is a massive distraction from actually running and growing the business.

TympaHealth has raised $23M in Series A funding, led by Octopus Ventures, to expand access to its tech-enabled hearing assessment and diagnostic solution.

I wish there was a cure to all the stress and anxiety entrepreneurs feel during fund-raising season. The truth is we all know the entrepreneurial journey can be an emotional rollercoaster and funding season is another level of pressure and emotional drain.

Skarper, the London-based start-up backed by Olympic legend Sir Chris Hoy, has secured an additional £4 million in funding. This is the second funding round in less than 12 months for the business, bringing the total amount invested to £8 million, supporting the acceleration and scaling of Skarper’s route to market.

Canopey, an online marketplace for environmentally sustainable and eco-conscious brands, has secured investment from two leading technology executives.

A pioneering programme which aims to open up valuable public sector contracts to SMEs has just been launched by Deloitte Digital and small business support platform Enterprise Nation. 

Startups are crucial to the long-term health and prosperity of the UK economy by creating wealth, jobs, and revenues to the exchequer. In the last financial year, over 750,000 startups were registered.

Loopin has raised £1.6 million in seed funding from high-net worth individuals and angel investors.

A group of leading UK venture capital investors have been confirmed as speakers for a novel upcoming event series which aims to tackle the problem surrounding founders and their ability to access the right funding.

Neuromod Devices has successfully closed a €30 million financing to further commercialise its tinnitus treatment device, Lenire.

Xilva, a global platform for investments in regenerative forests, announced it has raised $1.8 million in a pre-seed round from Brainforest, Bloomsbury Natural Capital, Insurtech.vc and a group of international angel investors. The funds will be used to further develop technological solutions and scale marketing and operations.

GoJoe, the first social fitness app for work and play, has announced its most recent investment of £1.2 million, led by Superbet Ventures.

Investing in Britain’s most promising young businesses has become increasingly popular, resulting in record years for venture capital fundraising.

Recently, Google unveiled a new fund of $4 million to support Black entrepreneurs across the EMEA region.

N1 fintech fund invested in SteadyPay, a British progressive lending platform with a Co-founder from Ukraine. European venture funds such as Ascension, The Future Fund, and others have already invested in this fintech.

Given that we might have officially entered a recession by the time you read this article, and with other global economies also on the brink of recession, when I think about the issues that women in tech are facing, raising funds in this climate seems high up on the agenda.

For a lot of founders, startups and scale-ups, funding is going to be a key priority. Yet many UK startups are unaware of the types of funding that can be secured from across the channel. This article will help to explain about European R&D Grant Funding opportunities and how UK-based businesses can access them. Let’s jump right in.