Glopho’s £150k round cornerstoned by a £100k SEIS structured investment from an LBA syndicate
Seed stage London based crowd-sourced photo sharing service, Glopho, has closed a £150k SEIS structured funding round which was corner stoned by a £100k investment by a syndicate of 4 LBA angels. The company has developed an internet based free-to-use website for people to upload their news photos and is supported by purpose-built smartphone apps across iOS, Android and Blackberry. The company’s website will provide advertisers with an innovative opportunity to engage with consumers, and it will also deliver a marketplace for traditional media to access a new source of crowd-sourced news photos. This first external funding round will now support the full launch of the company’s product and allow it to significantly drive up monthly page impressions and unique user metrics. They fully intend to return to LBA in an EIS funding round towards the end of the year.
Simon Walker, Glopho CEO, comments, “We were delighted to complete our first round with a syndicate of investors that have so much energy and experience to offer. After nearly 2 years of development, their support and input will accelerate our product development, as well as supporting a full launch to get Glopho more widely used and recognised as the place to publish and share images that tell the news.”
Anthony Clarke, Managing Director of LBA, comments, “Simon gave a very strong presentation recently to the LBA Investor network and my congratulations to the company in closing their first external funding round structured under the new SEIS scheme. This deal demonstrates LBA's commitment to also help start up companies with strong management teams to raise the initial seed capital to fuel their growth. LBA plans to launch an SEIS co-investment ' Side Car Fund' shortly to invest alongside our Network into seed deals to provide Fund investors with a spread portfolio of SEIS based businesses. Investors in the Fund will be able to benefit from the new 50% up front income tax break and other tax benefits of the SEIS Scheme”
London Business Angels
Anthony Clarke, Managing Director
Tel: +44 (0)20 7321 5672
E-mail: enquiries@lbangels.co.uk
Web: www.lbangels.co.uk
About London Business Angels
LBA is one of the most experienced private angel networks in the UK. Since the early 1980s the network has been connecting innovating fast growth small and medium sized enterprises with investment through our network of business angel investors. LBA, part of Angel Capital Group, is professionally managed by a highly experienced management team, leveraging over 15 years’ experience in the early stage investment marketplace as established leaders in the development of new angel-led early stage investment initiatives, and nearly 30 years’ investing experience through the LBA network. LBA is a founding member of the British Business Angels Association, the industry's best practice trade association, and is also a member of EBAN, the European Business Angels Network.
About the LBA EIS/SEIS Approved RoundTable Syndicate Funds
The LBA EIS Approved RoundTable Syndicate Fund is the culmination of 30 years’ experience of pioneering innovation in the UK Angel investment market. This FSA regulated HMRC Approved EIS Fund offers LBA Investors an innovative way to acquire a portfolio of investments, while taking advantage of the personal tax relief offered by the Enterprise Investment Scheme. The First £300k LBA EIS RoundTable Fund 2010 was fully invested in January 2011, making four investments in leading edge technologies during the previous year, spread across a range of sectors: Eykona (medtech); Syrinix (cleantech); ipadio (mobile); The Electrospinning Company (nanotech).
Following the successful 2010 Fund, the LBA EIS Approved RoundTable Syndicate Fund 2011-12 closed for subscriptions on 13 May 2011, being 40% larger at £420k. The fund invested in 5 leading edge technologies spread across a range of sectors: Camstent (medtech), Momentum Bioscience (medtech), Phase Vision (high value manufacturing), Michelson Diagnostics (medtech), Isotera (cleantech)
The LBA EIS Roundtable Syndicate Fund 2012, closed for subsciprtions on 5th April 2012, being the largest raised to date at £455k. The fund will seek to invest in 5-6 early stage companies in the forthcoming year.
The LBA SEIS Roundtable Syndicate Fund 2012, closed for subscriptions on 19th October 2012 and will seek to co-invest across 4-5 SEIS eligible deals alongside LBA investors
