It’s a complicated time to be a business owner, whether it’s a multinational company or a small enterprise. But while larger companies are having to make systematic changes to accommodate lockdowns, social distancing, and the other realities of COVID-19, many small businesses have been left adrift without clear guidance on how to proceed.

Data from Innovate Finance has revealed that the UK fintech sector received $4.1bn of investment across 408 deals in 2020. This places the UK second in the world for capital raised, and first in Europe. Although fintech investment fell year-on-year by 9%, this can be attributed due to the pandemic and subsequent economic turbulence.

Make no mistake, this is a challenging time for start-up businesses looking to make a splash. When we finally emerge blinking into the light after this most recent UK lockdown, we will still be operating in a business landscape that has drastically changed in the last twelve months.

The New York, Berlin and Tel Aviv based-startup, Dynamic Infrastructure has won its first contract in Australia and will deploy a novel AI-driven predictive technology for maintaining dozens of bridges and infrastructure assets in Horsham Rural City Council in the state of Victoria.

Fashion production software company, SupplyCompass has announced its next webinar on 27th January at 16:30 GMT, delving into ‘How 3D will shape the future of the fashion industry’. The webinar will examine the potential for 3D technology to transform the current fashion industry and how 3D can become a more widely accessible tool that can be adopted by big and small fashion brands alike.

Businessman Simon Dolan is today launching a new campaign which is calling on the Government to scrap the payback of emergency COVID-19 loans taken out by crisis-hit SMEs.

Workspace accelerator, Huckletree has launched a new quarterly series, Huckletree VC Connect, which sees them partner with leading VC firms to help founders who are looking to raise in the near future with informal and personalised advice. 

London & Partners have announced a new partnership for the Mayor’s International Business Programme (MIBP) with Ciklum, a leading technology partner, to help London startups and scaleups expand internationally.

The past 12 months have presented unprecedented challenges for small businesses. Many have undergone severe hardship during the COVID-19 pandemic, and some have closed completely. Even in this harshest of climates others have been able to keep trading, startup or even thrive.

Even the biggest companies started with just an idea. While their founders all dreamed for their business to grow, we’re guessing most of them didn’t really imagine that their small spark will stand strong and eventually reach a global scale. But we didn’t come here to talk about their ideas, we’re here to talk about yours and how to turn it into a reality.

Edinburgh-based robotics and STEM education startup, Robotical has bolstered its team with four new hires as it rolls out the latest version of its hero product, Marty The Robot.

With COVID-19 uncertainty carrying on well in to 2021, and Brexit seeing billions of pounds lost to the EU, job security is at a low for Brits of all ages. Individuals are turning to self-employment or setting up their own businesses, losing their jobs after time on furlough, taking voluntary redundancy or as a form of additional income.

Oculid, the eye tracking platform for remote user experience testing and marketing research, has announced completion of a seed funding round led by IBB Ventures and joined by the company’s existing investors.

As COVID-19 wreaks havoc on the UK economy, the country’s young people are taking matters into their own hands, a new major poll has revealed. The poll of over 2,000 British adults shows that one-in-seven (15%) young people (aged 18-24) in the UK plans to start their own business in 2021.

The past year has been an experiment in different working environments. Workers are again being asked to work from home during the third national lockdown in England while similar restrictions are advised in Scotland. However, the dramatic shift to working from home flexibility has outlined the importance of a good working environment.

Tech startup, Maison Sport has launched a crowdfunding campaign on Seedrs in a bid to raise £400,000 as part of a larger £1.4m raise. COVID-19 has undoubtedly hit the ski industry hard, but the challenges have accelerated the trio of founders’ determination to make the startup flourish.

Right now is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for a significant rethink, rewire and reset - but it won’t happen with the same tools and the same instruction manual of the past.

Together Price, the digital identity platform for managing group subscription plans, has become another equity crowdfunding success, securing €310,000 in just 6 days. The platform, which tackles growing 'subscription fatigue' around digital subscriptions, is among a new wave of startups adopting this latest approach of crowdfunding investment and quickly exceeded its target of €200,000 from over 1,500 public investors on Crowdcube.

Spill has announced that it has raised £2m in a seed round led by Ada Ventures. Spill is a London-based startup which provides remote mental health support for companies through the workplace messaging tool, Slack.

As everyone is gradually settling into the newer methods of working at the time of lockdowns such as collaboration and remote working, it is a good time to consider the professional skills you possess for increasing your worth as an employee. You must find out what skills have to be updated for meeting the changing demands. Most of the conventional professional development activities such as conventions, workshops, and conferences have been either postponed or cancelled.