Britain's - BVCA admin

Britain’s 

HOT Talent 

2009 

A HANDBOOK OF UK 

VENTURE CAPITAL INNOVATION

EDITORS 

2 

Editors 

Carmen Murray 

Charlotte Eynon 

Contributing Editor 

Nathan Williams 

t: 020 7420 1800 e: bvca@bvca.co.uk w: bvca.co.uk

Contents 

Foreword 5 

Chapter 1 Alternative Energy & Technologies 7 

Chapter 2 Business Support Services 23 

Chapter 3 Computer Services, Software & Telecoms 47 

Chapter 4 Medical Equipment & Services 79 

Chapter 5 Metals, Plastics & Mining 97 

Chapter 6 Pharmaceuticals & Biotechnology 105 

Chapter 7 Recreation & Leisure 123 

Chapter 8 Speciality Online Businesses 133 

Index 149 

t: 020 7420 1800 e: bvca@bvca.co.uk w: bvca.co.uk 

COnTEnTS 

3

4 


Foreword 

Welcome to the inaugural edition of Britain’s Hot Talent, a roll-call of some of 

Britain’s most exciting young companies and a celebration of the best and the 

brightest plying their trade in the pursuit of invention and innovation. 

This book demonstrates the central role that venture capital firms play in funding 

cutting-edge technologies and growth businesses and is a testament to the depth 

of research and spirit of entrepreneurship which is very much alive and well in 

Britain today. 

From artificial intelligence, to ticket exchanges, contact lenses to treatments for 

cancer, this handbook details over 100 of the most innovative companies which 

currently are, or recently were, backed by venture capital firms. 

Venture capital is habitually referred to as a ‘Good Thing’ but too often viewed 

in the abstract, with little understanding of how this type of financing relates to 

the real world and to real businesses. The lack of appreciation for the part it plays 

in funding new ideas and technologies or taking hugely promising companies to 

the next stage of their development is something this book aims to put right, by 

connecting the principle of venture capital with its practical outcomes. 

Venture capital support to young companies is more than a mere monetary 

investment. It is a commitment in manpower via technical and organisational 

support, sometimes for up to ten years at a time. This commitment by venture 

capital firms is good for the overall economic health and competitiveness of 

economies and is also good for investors, with recent research showing that 

venture capital returns are on a healthy upward trajectory. 

I hope you will find this book informative and useful in a practical sense. I also hope 

that the next time you find tickets to that sold-out gig or sporting event, or connect 

your laptop to the Internet in the most remote part of the country, this book 

prompts you to consider the role venture capital played, and is playing, in making it 

possible. 

Simon Walker 

Chief Executive 

BVCA 

Richard Anton 

Chairman, Venture Capital Committee 



FOREWORD 

5

AlTERnATIvE 

EnERgy & 

TEchnOlOgIES 

AlTERnATIvE EnERgy 

& TEchnOlOgIES 

BuSInESS SuppORT 

SERvIcES 

cOmpuTER 

SERvIcES, SOfTwARE 

& TElEcOmS 

mEDIcAl EquIpmEnT 

& SERvIcES 

mETAlS, plASTIcS 

& mInIng 

phARmAcEuTIcAlS 

& BIOTEchnOlOgy 

REcREATIOn 

& lEISuRE 

SpEcIAlITy OnlInE 

BuSInESSES

ACAL Energy Limited 

Nominated by EV 

ACAL Energy Ltd is a developer of fuel cell systems, modules and consumable 

chemicals for a range of uses including stationary, residential and automotive 

applications requiring larger than 1 kW of power. 

ACAL Energy was founded in August 2004 to research and optimise Dr Andrew 

Creeth’s invention for addressing the inherent technical limitations of the 

cathode side of membrane based fuel cells. Fuel cells are electrochemical 

systems that convert chemical energy to electrical power directly. 

The company’s innovative designs will help deliver substantial cost savings 

in fuel cell systems and performance improvements in Proton Exchange 

Membrane that will accelerate the adoption of PEM Fuel Cell technologies in 

key markets. 

Enterprise Ventures’ RisingStars Growth Fund initially invested in September 

2004 and has since increased its investment in the company, against a set of 

investment milestones. The company recently raised Series A funding and in 

recent trials has achieved industry-acknowledged peak power performance 

levels, and overall system demonstrations that evidence the credibility of the 

low cost fuel cells system potential. Dr Creeth has been working in related 

fields for more than 20 years and has a strong inventive record with over 20 

patents to his name. 

Key Management Dr S B Cha Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch Amanda Lyne alyne@acalenergy.co.uk 

Website www.acalenergy.co.uk 


ALTERnATIVE EnERGy & TECHnOLOGIES 

9


10 

Agri.capital 

Nominated by Ludgate Environmental 

Fund 

Founded in 2004, Agri.capital is a specialist developer, owner and operator of 

biogas plants in Germany. 

Agri.capital uses manure and various crop silages as feedstock to produce 

biogas as they decompose. This methane-rich gas mixture is either burned 

onsite to create electricity or cleaned to biomethane and fed into the existing 

German natural gas network. The fermentation residue is used as a high-quality 

fertilizer, returning nutrients to the soil. 

Agri.capital uses proven technology, has high and predictable cash flows and 

can rapidly roll-out fixed-price plants. The company has secured locked-in 

feedstock contracts and plants have stable revenue streams. By combining 

construction, facility and resource management, financing, logistics and 

contracting operations in-house, Agri.capital is able to provide reliable, 

renewable baseload power and heat to the German market. 

The company’s portfolio includes more than 100 biogas plants in different 

project stages, working in partnership with over 200 farmers and representing 

34 MW under management. Agri.capital recently completed a further 

fundraising of €60 million in order to triple capacity by 2010 through 

100 further plants. This will bring generation to a total of 115MW under 

management. 

Key Management Rurik B. Halaby Chairman and Founder 

William D. Goodbar Jr Managing Director 

Get in Touch halaby@agricapital.com 

Website www.agricapital.com 


Cascade Technologies Ltd 

Nominated by Braveheart Ventures 

Cascade Technologies has created novel technology which uses quantum 

cascade lasers to provide breakthrough products that create instant DnA-type 

“fingerprints” of gases, enabling their presence and quantity to be detected. 

The technology can be applied to multiple applications such as emissions 

monitoring in the marine and power generation industries and the detection of 

explosives and chemical agents. 

Cascade’s technology is low maintenance and requires little or no calibration 

making Cascade Technologies products a truly cost effective way of measuring 

emissions in real time. 

Cascade Technologies is a spin-out from the university of Strathclyde. 

Key Management Iain Howieson Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch i.howieson@cascade-technologies.com 

Website www.cascade-technologies.com 



11


12 

Chemrec 

Nominated by Environmental 

Technologies Fund 

Chemrec enables pulp and paper mills to become bio-refineries through 

application of its black liquor gasification technology. 

Chemrec’s technology helps mills dramatically increase their cash flow and 

profitability; and opens up new markets for mills, producing sustainable, lowcarbon 

chemicals and fuels. 

The company is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, with operations globally 

and plants in Pitea, Sweden and at Weyerhaeuser new Bern, north Carolina, 

uSA. Chemrec plants have 20 years of experience in the field of black liquor 

gasification technology. 

Key Management Richard LeBlanc Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch rick.leblanc@chemrec.se 

Website www.chemrec.se 


Controlled Power Technologies 

Nominated by LA Investments 

Cascade Technologies has created novel technology which uses quantum 

cascade lasers to provide breakthrough products that create instant DnA-type 

“fingerprints” of gases, enabling their presence and quantity to be detected. 

The technology can be applied to multiple applications such as emissions 

monitoring in the marine and power generation industries and the detection of 

explosives and chemical agents. 

Cascade’s technology is low maintenance and requires little or no calibration 

making Cascade Technologies products a truly cost effective way of measuring 

emissions in real time. 

Cascade Technologies is a spin-out from the university of Strathclyde. 

Key Management Nick Pascoe Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch nick.pascoe@cpowert.com 

Website www.cpowert.com 



13


14 

E-Stack 

Nominated by MMC Ventures 

E-Stack designs and manufactures ultra low-energy ventilation systems. The 

company’s patent-pending, controlled natural ventilation system reduces 

overall energy consumption of buildings by 50% compared with buildings using 

conventional ventilation systems. Almost half of all CO2 emissions globally are 

produced by the built environment; in the Eu, heating and cooling accounts for 

40% of these emissions. 

natural and low-energy ventilation is a growing niche within the £1.4bn uK 

HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) market, driven by energy 

consumption legislation, building regulations and cost pressures. 

E-Stack was spun out of the university of Cambridge following a BP-funded 

research programme at the university’s BP Institute. Sales have grown quickly 

and E-Stack has received funding from MMC Ventures and BP Alternative 

Energy Investments to expand the sales and R&D teams and fund working 

capital. 

The value and potential of the innovation has been recognised by two awards 

for innovation from the East of England Energy Group (EEEGR). The recently 

launched e-stack® ventilation system has had significant market pull, the 

success of which has been recognised by the awards including the 2008 Most 

Enterprising new Market Entrant of the year at the 2008 Euromoney and Ernst 

& young Global Renewable Energy Awards. 

Key Management Shaun Fitzgerald Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch Joanne Cracknell joanne.cracknell@e-stack.co.uk 

Website www.e-stack.co.uk 


Exosect 

Nominated by WHEB Ventures 

Exosect focuses on the development and sales of pest management solutions 

Exosect has developed a cost effective way of controlling insects in agriculture 

and food storage using pheromone-based technology. The company’s 

innovative and cost-effective products help growers, food producers and 

processors actively reduce their use of insecticides. Their goal is to assist 

growers achieve zero residues in their crops and produce high quality food 

for the consumer. Their products are used globally in a wide range of sectors 

including crop protection, (agriculture, horticulture and stored products), 

apiculture, amenity and public health. 

Based in Winchester, Exosect is commercially active in Europe, uSA, India and 

Australasia. The company has established partnerships in over 20 countries for 

co-development and distribution. 

Key Management Martin Brown Managing Director 

Get in Touch martin.brown@exosect.com 

Website www.exosect.com 



15

AlternAtive energy & technologies 

16 

Helveta 

Nominated by oxford capital Partners 

helveta develops software for the verification and control of timber supply 

chains. 

helveta was incorporated in 2004 and works with governments, ngos and 

large corporations. the company’s systems have been installed in numerous 

developing countries and are playing a growing role in the fight against climate 

change and the trade in illegally felled timber. helveta is a cleantech-focused 

company with the advantages of a software business model. revenues are 

growing at over 250% per annum. 

Key Management Patrick Newton Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch info@helveta.com 

Website www.helveta.com 


New Earth Solutions 

Nominated by Impax Asset Management 

new Earth Solutions is a private uK group that has developed a range of 

technologies and processes designed to treat and recover value from waste 

and mitigate its impact on the environment. 

The company’s processes include enclosed composting and biological 

treatment of waste and transforming waste to renewable energy. In treating 

the waste, new Earth Solutions helps local authorities to meet their obligations 

to divert waste from landfill under the Eu directive and contributes to 

composting and recycling rates. 

new Earth Solutions currently holds contracts for over two million tonnes of 

waste with six authorities across England. Following two injections of capital 

from Impax Asset Management, coupled with the launch of a dedicated fund 

which invests directly in the group’s operating assets, new Earth Solutions is 

poised for accelerated growth over the next five years as it rolls out a network 

of waste treatment facilities throughout the uK. 

Having operated its own facility since 2002, new Earth Solutions has been 

able to fully understand and encompass the disciplines required to manage 

a facility to the exacting requirements of the Animal By-Product Regulations. 

The design of the new Earth Solutions process incorporates many aspects of 

proven Austrian technology with a process specifically designed to meet the 

requirements of the uK regulatory framework. 

Key Management Chris Cox Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch info@newearthsolutions.co.uk 

Website www.newearthsolutions.co.uk 



17


18 

Plant Impact 


Plant Impact (Pi) is an innovative green science company specialising in 

precision crop nutrition, which provides effective solutions for major food 

issues. Its unique cutting-edge technologies reduce plant stress, increase 

marketable yield, improve product quality, prolong shelf life and enhance 

overall profitability. These technologies are designed to further the principles of 

sustainable agriculture and are better for the environment, the grower and the 

consumer. 

Plant Impact’s new clean technologies minimise inputs whilst maximising quality 

output without depleting the earth’s resources or damaging the environment; 

addressing the adverse effects of climate change on agriculture and are tailored 

to meet specific market needs. 

The company’s sales network incorporates Pi agronomists, overseas distributors 

and specific licence agreements. 

Enterprise Ventures’ RisingStars Growth Fund first invested in the company at 

the Proof of Concept stage in March 2004. 

Key Management Peter Blezard Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch maureen@plantimpact.com 

Website www.plantimpact.net 


Sterecycle 

Nominated by Impax Asset Management 

Sterecycle is a waste management business that has developed patented 

technologies that are capable of recycling and recovering up to 80% of the 

typical household waste stream. 

Sterecycle has built a full-scale plant in yorkshire that can process 100,000 

tonnes per annum of waste, equivalent to the waste produced by a town 

of 200,000 people. This is the first full-scale commercial autoclave plant in 

the world to treat household waste. Whilst autoclaving has been used for a 

number of years for sterilising medical waste, Sterecycle has pioneered its 

use at industrial scale and for recycling municipal solid waste. In addition, the 

facility uses Sterecycle’s own unique autoclaving system which is highly energy 

efficient and is self-sustaining when integrated with a green energy plant. 

Key Management Duncan Grierson Chief Executive and Founder 

Get in Touch grierson@sterecycle.com 

Website www.sterecycle.com 



19


20 

Vertical Wind Energy 

Nominated by northStar Equity Investors 

Vertical Wind Energy Ltd is an innovative wind power solutions company that 

has developed a vertical axis wind turbine built out of scaleable components 

which can deliver power at a number of output ratings ranging from 3 to 25KW. 

using this technology, Vertical Wind Energy offers the most cost effective 

micro-wind generation system currently on the market. 

VWE’s first product, a 3KW turbine is aimed at the domestic and small 

commercial market. A 6KW turbine is due for launch in late 2009. 

Based in the north East of England, the company has identified the region as 

a key area for its technology and is leveraging off the considerable renewables 

expertise in the region. 

VWE has a number of turbines already in place across the uK and Ireland 

including Southampton, Leicester, Belfast and East Kilbride with a further turbine 

due for installation on the Environment Agency offices in newcastle. 

Key Management Tony Gordon Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch Michelle Oliver michelle.oliver@golleyslater.co.uk 

Website www.vweltd.co.uk 




21

BuSInESS 

SuppORT 

SERvIcES 




SERvIcES 

cOmpuTER 


& TElEcOmS 


& SERvIcES 


& mInIng 



REcREATIOn 

& lEISuRE 


BuSInESSES

Active Health Partners 

Nominated by Dawn Capital 

Active Health Partners has been a pioneer in the use of web-based software 

solutions and the delivery of remote occupational health. The company aims 

to help business to reduce employee absence by using a combination of 

qualified nurses in uK call-centres and a sophisticated web application. 

The company was founded in 2004 by Ingolv urnes, a former Goldman Sachs 

investment banker and initially funded by a network of private investors. 

Active Health Partners received its first round of venture capital funding in 2008 

from Dawn Capital and has grown from a handful of employees to nearly 100 

of staff with offices in London and Leeds. Covering over 60,000 employees 

and with clients in both private and public sector, Active Health Partners is well 

placed to benefit from the trend towards remote delivery of healthcare and 

better integration of corporate health solutions. 

Key Management Bruce Robinson Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch bruce.robinson@ahp.co.uk 

Website www.ahp.co.uk 


BuSInESS SuPPORT SERVICES 

25


26 

Aria Networks 

Nominated by Seraphim Capital 

Aria networks is a developer of next-generation artificial-intelligence software. 

Aria’s proprietary technology more closely mimics the analytical power of the 

human brain than any other artificial intelligence technique currently available. 

Aria achieves this by building a network made up of interconnecting artificial 

neurons which imitate the properties of the biological neurons in the human 

brain, allowing Aria’s artificial intelligence to be self-learning and to continually 

evolve. Aria is currently exploiting its advanced software within the trillion 

dollar global telecoms industry with a view to fundamentally changing the way 

complex telecoms networks are designed, planned and operated. 

Aria networks uses its advanced artificial intelligence knowledge to create the 

intelligent OSS and BSS software and competence to help users forecast, plan 

and optimise their business, services, network resources, and customers. 

The company’s solutions enable the reduction of operational expenditure, 

reduce capital expenditure and improve customer satisfaction. 

Key Management Tony Fallows Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch tony.fallows@aria-networks.com 

Website www.aria-networks.com 


Buy.at 

Nominated by DFJ Esprit 

Buy.at is a specialist marketing company which produces campaigns that 

work in tandem with clients’ current marketing strategy to drive maximum 

online results. The buy.at affiliate network was launched in 2002 and has since 

established a market leading position in the uK 

The company has successfully boosted online sales for the uK’s biggest 

brands including Play.com, 3 mobile, AA, Butlins, Carphone Warehouse, Capital 

One, Egg, John Lewis, Lloyds TSB, HMV, Lombard Direct, Littlewoods, M&S, 

Thorntons, Powergen, Scottish Power, Sky, T-mobile and Virgin Media. 

Revenues have grown over 200% a year for the last 3 years and the company 

reported a turnover of approximately £19m in 2006. Significant investments 

have been made in both technology and staff, with over 50 employees now 

working in Buy.at’ s newcastle and London offices. 

Key Management John Fraser Chief Technical Officer 

Get in Touch enquiries@buy.at 

Website www.buy.at 



27


28 

Clash Media 


Clash Media launched in 2006. 

Clash Media offers online lead generation,the online equivalent of direct 

marketing and already operates in the uK, uS, Germany, France and 

Scandinavia. It employs over 100 people and is continuing to hire. Turnover in 

its third year of trading was £14m and new products that have recently been 

developed will ensure that the company continues to grow rapidly. 

Clash Media’s lead generation solutions take advantage of their own advanced 

results-driven technology, focusing on comprehensive campaign management. 

Clash generates high return on investment enabling the company to quickly 

expand its client base. 

Key Management Simon Wajcenberg Chief Executive Officer 

Stephen Hunt Finance Director 

Get in Touch simon@clash-media.com 

Website www.clash-media.com 


Durham Mag-Lev Ltd 


Durham Mag-Lev Ltd develops technology to improve aerodynamic testing of 

F1 cars. Mag-Lev uses a magnetic levitation system based on high temperature 

superconductors in wind tunnel tests rather than physical struts to produce 

data which is considerably more accurate due to there being no artificial 

supports to disrupt the air flow around the vehicle. 

The technology, as well as being used in F1, will also have a use in the road car 

sector as aerodynamics become increasingly important due to high oil prices 

and concerns over environmental impact. There are no other commercially 

available products on the market which utilise the same system as Durham 

Mag-Lev. The company has received venture capital backing from northStar 

Equity Investors and OnE north East. 

Key Management Dr Robert Muscroft Founder and Managing Director 

Get in Touch durhammaglevltd@uknetpark.net 

Website none 



29


30 

Edenbrook Ltd 

Nominated by Elderstreet Capital Partners 

Edenbrook is an independent information technology consultancy that helps 

organisations to evaluate, select, and put in place advanced programmes 

designed to have a measurable effect on business efficiency. 

Edenbrook was venture capital backed at its inception in 2001 with £500k, 

with a further £1m made available to the company in 2005 to fund a small 

acquisition. The business was sold in April 2009 to Hitachi Consulting in an 

all cash transaction. Elderstreet Capital Partners share of the proceeds was 

£6.5m. This represents a multiple of 4 times cost and an IRR (internal rate of 

return) of 26% over the 8 years that ECP held the investment. The transaction 

placed a value on Edenbrook of greater than 10x EBITDA which compares very 

favourably against market comparables. 

Key Management David Kilpatrick Managing Director 

Get in Touch jasmith@hitachiconsulting.com 

Website www.edenbrook.co.uk 


Elateral 

Nominated by SPARK Ventures 

Elateral is a rapidly growing developer of a web-based marketing automation 

service that streamlines the delivery of complex global marketing campaigns 

across media, borders and channels. Elateral MSP, an award winning, easy to 

use, scalable, web-based solution is redefining how brands go to market. The 

product allows clients to take the time and cost out of marketing processes 

and to produce successful, targeted demand generation campaigns. 

Internationally known brands including Coca-Cola, DaimlerChrysler, Cisco 

and SAP depend on Elateral to simplify their marketing processes, save time 

and money, better serve and empower marketers and preserve their brands’ 

valuable DnA within the broadest of user communities. 

Key Management Paul Goater Chief Executive Officer 

Angus de Watteville Chief Financial Officer 

Peter Blackburn Chief Technical Officer 

Get in Touch info@elateral.com 

Website www.elateral.com 



31


32 

Fizzback Group 

Nominated by Advent Venture Partners 

The Fizzback Group are innovators in customer engagement. Founded in 2004, 

the award winning Fizzback solution helps companies to listen, respond and act 

in real-time to their customers’ comments. 

Feedback captured at the point of experience is analysed automatically using 

a unique artificial intelligence engine, driving relevant responses, prompting 

company action and providing powerful insight into the voice of a previously 

silent majority. Fizzback enables businesses to derive true economic benefits by 

increasing customer lifetime value and positive word-of-mouth. 

High calibre clients have so far included T Mobile, Phones 4 u, The Carphone 

Warehouse, national Express and Marks & Spencer. 

Key Management Rob Keve Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch info@fizzback.com 

Website www2.fizzback.com 


Gambling Compliance 


Gambling Compliance is a subscription based information service delivered 

daily to clients’ desktop via email alerts and a highly sophisticated website. 

The Gambling Compliance team is made up of legal, regulatory and finance 

professionals who specialise in the gaming industry and provide an exclusive, 

high level and independent analysis of the global gaming market to their 

worldwide client base of more than 800 top gaming executives and regulatory 

bodies. 

The company’s web site provides immediate access to more than 200 indepth 

country, state, and province regulatory profiles from around the world 

and extensive analysis across all gaming sectors. 

The Gambling Compliance team is based in the uSA and Europe. 

Key Management Thea Dunnett Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch thea@gamblingcompliance.com 

Website www.gamblingcompliance.com 



33


34 

iiPAY 


iiPAy, also known as Integrated International Payroll Limited, is an integrated 

payroll solutions provider to multi-national and mid-sized corporations globally. 

The company’s cutting-edge technologies offer advanced solutions for 

simplifying, standardising and consolidating organisations’ payrolls worldwide. 

For customers like P&O with complex international payroll requirements, iiPay is 

currently servicing payrolls throughout Europe as well as processing the client’s 

multi-jurisdictional seafarers payroll. 

iiPAy now provides service in more than 80 countries worldwide and in 

over 40 currencies. Since MMC’s initial investment in 2005, the business has 

experienced a compound annual growth rate of 106% between 2006 and 2009 

and is now recognised as a marker leader. 

The iiPAy system is ideally suited to companies with large and/or complex 

international payroll requirements that cannot readily be met by standard 

payroll systems, which by their nature, can usually only cope with their own 

jurisdiction. Being platform independent and specifically designed to process 

payroll data only, it can be implemented quickly and easily and sits alongside 

traditional ERP systems. Its strength is that it can be easily configured and 

implemented as a single common solution to disparate or complex payroll 

requirements. iiPAy has established payroll bureaux in the uK and uS that 

provide fully managed international payroll services and consultancy utilising the 

iiPAy platform. 

Key Management John Cassie Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch john.cassie@iipay.com 

Website www.iipay.com 


Lagan 

Nominated by DFJ Espirit 

Lagan is a software company which has developed a suite of scalable, costeffective 

enterprise software solutions used by more than 170 government 

agencies worldwide. As a result, over 37 million citizens around the world are 

supported by Lagan solutions. 

Lagan’s product, Enterprise Case Management (ECM) has been designed to 

streamline the service delivery functions of government, enabling improved 

efficiency and more citizen-centric, joined-up public services. Lagan ECM 

manages the interactions between citizens and government and provides full 

support for a wide variety of government service delivery processes. The ECM 

approach addresses all tiers of government including local, regional, central 

government and the wider public sector. 

Lagan ECM can be easily integrated into existing technology environments 

and is highly configurable – by partners, customers or Lagan – meaning that 

there is no need for any coding or specialist technical skills. This enables rapid 

implementation and quick system changes, keeping costs low. 

Key Management Des Speed Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch Laura Nelson Laura_nelson@lagan.com 

Website www.lagan.com 



35


36 

Maxymiser 

Nominated by Pentech Ventures 

Maxymiser is Europe’s leading provider of onsite marketing solutions. The 

company’s solutions and services are dedicated conversion management 

— the techniques and processes of creating better web content that in turn 

improve the performance of web site metrics. 

Maxymiser was founded in response to a clear requirement from marketers 

to have action focused technology and services to drive onsite metrics. The 

company linked the generation of content in real-time to the responses of 

visitors to sites, applied mathematical principles that make the generation 

process smarter and statistical principles that predict current and future 

behaviour. Maxymiser focuses on achieving uplift in any click metric or 

combination of click metrics that its clients need to drive. The targeting 

technologies employed by the business make user experience more relevant, 

further boosting Conversion and Retention. 

Key Management Tim Brown Chief Executive Officer 

Mark Simpson Managing Director 

Get in Touch mark@maxymiser.com 

Website www.maxymiser.com 


Mergermarket Limited 

Nominated by Beringea 

Mergermarket is an online provider of information to financial services 

companies via the world’s largest group of M&A journalists and analysts who 

have direct access to the most senior decision-makers and largest companies. 

Beringea originally invested in Mergermarket in 2001, followed by further 

investment in 2002. The company’s revenues grew from £1 million in 2001 to 

£35 million in 2006 with employee numbers increasing from 30 to more than 

300 over the same period. The company was sold to the Financial Times in 

2006 for £140m, generating a 14 times return on the original investment. 

Incorporated in December 1999 by founders Caspar Hobbs, Charlie Welsh 

and Gawn Rowan Hamilton, Mergermarket has since become the fastest 

growing business in its sector. As well as expanding its coverage across Europe, 

the united States, Latin America and the Asia-Pacific region, the company 

continues to launch ground-breaking products and services. 

Key Management Caspar Hobbs Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch ch@mergermarket.com 

Website www.mergermarket.com 



37


38 

MirriAd 


MirriAd has developed unique technology that digitally inserts branded images 

into video content, making them look like they were always there. 

The company’s disruptive technology is pioneering embedded advertising and 

is set to revolutionise the $5billion global product placement industry. For the 

first time branded products and logos can now be seamlessly placed into video 

content post-production, across cinema, TV, DVD, mobile and online platforms. 

MirriAd enables advertisers to regionalise more effectively - targeting specific 

audiences by changing where brands and products are placed in a video clip, 

according to who and where in the world it is being watched. 

Key Management Mark Popkiewicz Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch contact@mirriad.com 

Website www.mirriad.com 


Nomad Payments Limited 


The company, originally called nomad Software Limited, started as a developer 

and supplier of banking payment systems based on traditional magnetic cards 

and newer technology such as smart cards. Its product CORTEX commanded 

a significant customer base, primarily in Central and Eastern Europe and the 

Middle East, and enjoyed a market leadership position in Poland and the Baltic 

States. 

Later, the company repositioned its business, with the benefit of strategic input 

from the then quester investment manager responsible (now Spark Ventures), 

to build on a technical advantage that it had developed in the processing of 

transactions for uK debit card and prepaid credit card issuers. 

It was nomad’s development of a leading position in this area that attracted 

the interest of a number of potential acquirers. A trade sale to the u.S. banking 

and payments technology company Metavante Technologies, Inc. was 

successfully completed in January 2008. The company now trades under the 

name Metavante Technologies Limited. 

The company was originally backed by the quester funds in 2000 and 

supported in a series of follow-on rounds in 2001, 2004, 2006 and 2007. 

Key Management John Yeomans President 

Get in Touch john.yeomans@metavante.eu 

Website www.metavante.com 



39


40 

SalesPush 

Nominated by Aspiration Capital 

Management 

SalesPush is a company which helps users develop a more cost-effective 

customer relationship management system. using SalesPush technology, users 

can see where their best leads originate from and which campaigns, media and 

other strategies are most effective. 

Real-time and comprehensive visibility into market data puts SalesPush 

customers in control of the entire sales process, from cold leads to conversion, 

which can help radically improve sales performance. SalesPush also helps users 

to identify where the faults lie and attention is needed. Being able to spot where 

intervention is needed and to identify wider weaknesses immediately improves 

the quality of sales management. 

Key Management Mark Donkin Managing Director 

Get in Touch Contact via the website 

Website www.salespush.com 


Small World Financial Services 


Small World is a pan-European family of ethnically-focused financial services 

businesses. Targeting Europe’s 36 million-strong community of foreignborn 

migrant workers, Small World and its subsidiaries provide their growing 

customer base with cost effective, quick and dependable services for 

international money transfer, cheque cashing, bureau de change and prepaid 

debit cards. Headquartered in London, the Group trades across 8 European 

countries. 

Consolidating the highly fragmented European consumer money transfer 

sector, Small World has created a mid-market financial services group on 

an integrated platform and is servicing a customer base uniquely difficult to 

access. The group has deployed the industry’s most flexible and functionally 

rich transactional system, fully integrated with hundreds of international 

partner organizations. It is now poised to capitalize on its success by rolling out 

additional products and services, as well as replicating its buy and build model 

into further European territories. 

In addition to their long-held expertise in the traditional ‘bricks and mortar’ 

money transfer business of servicing cash-based customers, Small World is 

developing ‘Small World Online’ and creating a ‘Mobile Money Superhighway’ 

in partnership with mobile gateway specialist Mi-Pay – to provide mobile 

operators around the world with a ‘fast-track’ solution for immediate global 

mobile money transfer and international prepay phone top-up to over 30 

strategic country corridors. 

Key Management Nick Day Managing Director 

Get in Touch Teresa Dinis teresa.dinis@smallworldfs.com 

Website www.smallworldfs.com 



41


42 

STX Services 

Nominated by Ludgate Environmental 

Fund 

STX Services is an Amsterdam-based company specialising in the broking and 

trading of environmental financial products, with a particular focus on the 

carbon markets. 

STX Services is active predominantly broking and trading Eu Emission 

Allowances but has also diversified into transactions in Certified Emission 

Reduction, Voluntary Emissions Reduction, Biofuel Tickets, Green Certificates 

and Electricity Load-Profile Arbitrage. 

The company applies its expertise on the energy market to a client’s specific 

circumstances. STX Services is a full service organization providing solutions to 

European institutions exposed to the turbulent energy market. 

The team of professionals at STX Services have comprehensive experience in 

both the financial and energy markets. 

Key Management Tim van der Noordt Managing Director 

Get in Touch info@stxservices.com 

Website www.stxservices.com 


Thomsons Online Benefits 

Nominated by Pi Capital 

Thomsons Online Benefits helps businesses maximise the value of their 

reward package for employees by combining consulting, communication and 

technology. 

The company’s target customers are those companies which are reviewing 

their reward strategy, implementing flexible benefits, changing their pension 

scheme, or looking for technology to reduce their benefit administration. 

In 2008 Thomsons Online Benefits generated revenue of £12 million with a 

compound growth rate over the last 5 years of over 40%. Profits have also seen 

similar growth over the same period of time. 

Pi Capital invested £2.75m in December 2004, and in the four years leading up 

to 2008, both revenues and EBIT increased by a factor of more than 6 times 

and employee numbers grew substantially. The business is an example of a 

relatively young uK head-quartered company that is thriving globally. 

Key Management Chris Bruce Managing Director 

Get in Touch press@thomsons.com 

Website www.Thomsons.com 



43


44 

vc-net 


vc-net is a video conferencing network provider which, in addition to selling 

hardware and complete, scalable conferencing solutions, provides full 

support services. vc-net offers high-quality, low-cost networks and routes 

communications over its own virtual network to blue chip customers. 

Today, vc-net is a video conferencing supply company with the ability 

to provide all network requirements to their clients, from point to point 

connections to fully managed IPVPns; Video and Audio Visual hardware and 

room builds; and a suite of complementary collaboration tools such as audio 

and web conferencing. 

MMC Ventures has backed the business from early concept stage in 2001. 

Key Management Terry Cave Executive Chairman 

Get in Touch tcave@vc-net.net 

Website www.vc-net.net 


VirtenSys 

Nominated by SEP 

VirtenSys is an IT data centre systems company that designs and sells PCI Express 

Virtualisation Switches. The company’s advanced switch technology enables 

Data Centres to build racks of servers which require 50% fewer cables, use 30% 

less electricity and are as much as 50% cheaper to build. The market for these 

infrastructure switches is expected to reach over $4bn per annum. 

Virtensys is based in Manchester uK, and Portland, Oregon, uSA. The company 

was spun-out of nasdaq quoted Xyratex Inc in 2005 and is now recognised as 

being a leader in its market. Over £30m has been invested in its advanced PCI 

Switch which is protected by over 30 patents. 

VirtenSys solutions have revolutionized how Input/Output (I/O) infrastructure is 

deployed and used in data centres. The company’s I/O Virtualization products 

can be utilized without disruption to existing servers and networks, protecting 

previous IT infrastructure investments. The company is working with the majority 

of the large Server vendors to launch OEM branded product in the uS, Europe 

and Asia over the next 12 months. 

Key Management Ahmet Houssein President & Chief Executive Officer (US) 

Marek Piekarski Chief Technical Officer (UK) 

Get in Touch info@virtensys.com 

Website www.virtensys.com 



45

cOmpuTER 

SERvIcES, 

SOfTwARE 

& TElEcOmS 




SERvIcES 

cOmpuTER 


& TElEcOmS 


& SERvIcES 


& mInIng 



REcREATIOn 

& lEISuRE 


BuSInESSES

AdaptiveMobile 

Nominated by Doughty Hanson 

AdaptiveMobile is the leading provider of unified security for mobile and fixed 

operators, protecting their networks and subscribers across enterprise and 

consumer markets. With over 400 million subscribers protected today across 

the globe, the company delivers comprehensive protection from the increasing 

threats of mobile spam, viruses, malware, inappropriate content, unsolicited 

communications and fraud. 

AdaptiveMobile’s Policy Control software works across all mobile and wireless 

bearers, including SMS, Web, email and voice; it effectively reduces the cost of 

network operation and generates new revenues. 

AdaptiveMobile was founded in 2003 and boasts some of the world’s largest 

mobile operators as customers. It also counts leading security & telecom 

equipment vendors as partners including nSn, Huawei and Symantec. 

The company is headquartered in Dublin with offices in the north America, 

Europe, South Africa, Middle East and Asia Pacific. 

Key Management Lorcan Burke Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch Contact via website 

Website www.adaptivemobile.com 


COMPuTER SERVICES, SOFTWARE & TELECOMS 

49


50 

Antix Labs Ltd. 

Nominated by northStar Equity 

Investors 

Antix Labs is a software engineering company whose software platform, the 

Antix Game Player, allows consumers to play and share premium quality games 

and other content across a multitude of different mobile phone handsets as 

well as PCs, netbooks and other multimedia devices. 

Development of the Antix Game Player began in the summer of 2007; its 

developer kit was launched in 2008 and the first handsets incorporating the 

Player will be available later in 2009. With $10M already invested in product 

development, Antix now has multiple commercial licenses with global handset 

manufacturers and is currently working with numerous games developers and 

publishers. 

The Antix team has accumulated many years’ experience in the design and 

bringing to market of rich media software platforms working for operators, 

handset manufacturers, games publishers, compiler companies and silicon 

design houses. 

Key Management Francis Charig Cave Chief Executive Officer 

& Co-Founder 

Get in Touch francis.charig@antixlabs.com 

Website www.antixlabs.com 


Arieso 

Nominated by Oxford Capital Partners 

Arieso is a mobile network software business offering solutions to mobile 

operators to increase the efficiency of their networks and reduce capital 

expenditure. 

Arieso is a leading provider of subscriber experience geo-location, capital 

budget management and automatic network optimization solutions for 

wireless networks. Headquartered in the uK and with offices worldwide, the 

company delivers solutions that enable network operators to geo-locate, 

evaluate and optimize the subscriber experience. Arieso solutions have 

enhanced the network performance and maximized the return on investment 

for leading mobile operators around the world. 

Arieso’s solutions are offered through a range of delivery models; from the 

supply of software products with associated deployment and support to fully 

outsourced services. The company is growing rapidly with sales across the 

globe. 

Key Management Shirin Dehghan Chief Executive Officer 


Website www.arieso.com 



51


52 

Audium Semi 


Based in Bristol, Audium Semi is a fabless semiconductor company that designs, 

develops and markets audio power amplifier integrated circuits that are 20 

times more power efficient than competing technologies at normal listening 

levels. 

using Audium devices in consumer audio applications, users reduce power 

consumption, extend battery life, enable smaller form factors, cut costof-ownership, 

reduce waste and ultimately contribute towards a more 

sustainable environment. All this can be achieved with Audium Semi, without 

compromising system performance. 

From home theatre systems to companion speakers for PCs, the company’s 

technology is revolutionising the design of consumer audio systems. Through 

partnerships with other leading semiconductor companies, completely wireless 

speakers, enabled due to their ultra-low power consumption, are just around the 

corner. 

Key Management Clyde Witchard Chief Executive Officer & Founder 

Get in Touch info@audiumsemi.com 

Website www.audiumsemi.com 


Huw Davies PhD Chief Commercial Officer & Founder

Blackbay Ltd 

Nominated by Albion Ventures 

Blackbay Ltd is a software company which provides solutions for mobile 

workforces. The technology allows the transfer of data between mobile 

devices and back office systems in real time, thus improving customer service, 

employee productivity and reducing billing times. Blackbay clients include 

Royal Mail, Australia Post, DHL, Dyson and Konica Minolta. 

Blackbay’s core mobile worker applications offer organisations significant 

return on investment based upon reduced costs, increased sales and improved 

productivity and service levels. 

Key Management Avi Azulai Chairman 

Larry Klimczyk Managing Director 

Get in Touch Kate Kinraid kate.kinraid@blackbay.com 

Website www.blackbay.com 



53


54 

Bloxx Ltd 

Nominated by Braveheart Ventures 

Founded in 1999, Bloxx has expanded to a multimillion pound operation with 

products sold in Europe and north America.. 

Bloxx is an award-winning web filtering company that has developed novel 

approaches to prevent inappropriate use of the web by employees. 

Bloxx’s Tru-View technology uses patented technology to analyse and 

categorise web pages quicker and more accurately than other web filters. By 

using advanced intelligent identification and analysis techniques, Tru-View 

provides instant classification of web content as soon as it is accessed, which 

helps organisations proactively manage users’ access to web content which 

otherwise might lower productivity, expose the organisation to risk and liability 

or pose a network security threat. Over 1.5 million users from an impressive 

customer list already benefit from enhanced security and performance. 

Key Management Eamonn Doyle Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch edoyle@bloxx.com 

Website www.bloxx.com 


CamSemi 


CamSemi is a fabless semiconductor business providing silicon chips used in 

power supplies for consumer devices such as mobile phone chargers, portable 

devices and low voltage lighting applications. The company was listed by EE 

Times in its list of ’10 Startups to Watch in 2009’ and was a spin out from the 

university of Cambridge. 

CamSemi was founded to bring to market a new generation of power 

management chips helping manufacturers more easily meet the world’s 

increasing demand to save energy at an affordable price. CamSemi’s products 

have class leading power efficiency, significant size and cost savings in the final 

power supply and are one of only a very few companies in the world which can 

meet the new European efficiency rules for mobile phone chargers. 

SEP has a lead investor in CamSemi and has played a key role in its strategic 

development. The company’s initial product offerings are targeting the switch 

mode power supply and lighting sectors. CamSemi has recently shipped its 10 

millionth chip and volumes continue to grow. 

Key Management David Baillie Chief Executive Officer 


Website www.camsemi.com 



55


56 

Cambridge Broadband 

Networks 

Nominated by Amadeus Capital Partners 

Cambridge Broadband networks is a manufacturer of wireless backhaul 

solutions for mobile networks that enable companies to signifi cantly reduce 

costs. 

The company operates a forward-looking strategy that is dedicated to 

providing network operators with a low-risk, scalable platform designed to 

signifi cantly reduce backhaul OPEX and CAPEX. 

Since its inception in 2000, Cambridge Broadband networks has become a 

market leader for Point-to-Multipoint backhaul solutions. From offi ces in the uK, 

Africa and Malaysia, the company operates in 33 countries and is continuing to 

grow quickly in response to a fast-developing industry. 

The company’s award-winning products have been commended for their 

outstanding innovation and technical advance. 

Key Management Graham Peel Chief Executive Offi cer 

Get in Touch info@cbnl.com 

Website www.cbnl.com 


Clearpace 


Clearpace is an infrastructure software company that provides the leading 

repository for historical structured data. The company enables its partners to 

deliver online data retention solutions that reduce the cost and complexity of 

preserving information in the enterprise and the cloud. 

All companies are keeping larger volumes of data for longer periods to satisfy 

business and regulatory demands. The inactive structured data held within 

application databases, data warehouses or log files is growing uncontrollably. 

In the current economic and regulatory climate, CIO’s are focusing on reducing 

the burden of preserving this historical information. 

Clearpace provides a specialized data repository that allows companies 

to simply, securely and cost effectively preserve structured data in their 

data centre, or in the cloud. The Clearpace software delivers extreme data 

compression, typically 40:1, while keeping archived data easily accessible 

using industry standard reporting or BI tools. In addition, the data repository 

is autonomic requiring no design, tuning or maintenance. The software has 

been designed to leverage commodity servers and storage, delivering low-cost 

scalability and performance. 

Key Management John Bantleman Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch Julian Cook Julian.cook@clearpace.com 

Website www.clearpace.com 



57


58 

Cognitive Match 

Nominated by Dawn Capital 

Cognitive Match uses the latest advances in artificial intelligence, learning 

mathematics, psychology and semantic technologies to match people with 

online content such as products, offers, editorial or creative executions. 

This matching stimulates higher rates of response and/or purchase and 

ultimately, profit. Cognitive Match is also applying its matching engine to a 

range of clients in several industry areas. 

Cognitive Match’s team combines the best brains in learning mathematics, 

artificial intelligence and cognitive science to build software solutions that will 

effectively create the ultimate search engine. 

Key Management Alex Kelleher Founder and Managing Director 

Glen Conybeare Co-founder and Commercial Director 

Get in Touch alex@cognitivematch.com 

Website www.cognitivematch.com 


Consilium Technologies Ltd. 


Consilium Technologies has become one of the leading suppliers of IT 

solutions, assisted by a 20 year track record of providing innovative software to 

local government and social housing bodies among others in a well established 

customer base. 

With offices in Atlanta, Boston, Belfast, London and Manila, Consilium 

Technologies is a leader in the delivery of mobile software applications. The 

company is currently experiencing growth opportunities in the uSA where the 

delivery of public services is still predominantly paper-based 

Key Management Colin Reid Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch colin.reid@ctechs.co.uk 

Website www.ctechs.co.uk 



59


60 

Forth Dimension Displays 


and Doughty Hanson 

Forth Dimension Displays is a high–resolution near-to-eye (nTE) micro-display 

supplier. 

The company provides a wide range of microdisplay solutions optimised for the 

best performance in demanding nTE applications. Its fast, all digital, software 

configured, technology delivers high quality, full colour, images on a single high 

resolution micro-display. 

Forth Dimension Displays’ products and technical services are backed by an 

approved microdisplay design and manufacturing site which includes a microdisplay 

fab and supporting assembly and test facilities. The company is privately 

owned and focused on organic growth. 

Based in Dalgety Bay, Fife, Scotland, Forth Dimension Displays also has offices 

in the uS, Europe and Asia. The company was formed as CRLO Displays Ltd. in 

September 2004. 

Key Management Greg Truman Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch acraig@forthdd.com 

Website www.forthdd.com 


Freerunner 


Freerunner enables consumers to get free broadband access in underserved 

and digitally remote areas of the uK by installing free-to-use access points in 

both public and commercial venues of any size. 

The company’s objective is to readdress the balance between big brand venues 

and those areas that are currently significantly underserved. 

Freerunner will provide the service completely free of charge to communityoriented 

venues. In commercial venues, such as coffee shops and pubs, the 

free access will be largely funded by the venue and its partners. The advantage 

for commercial venues is that they pay for the service at just a third of the 

current rate set by other operators. All venues will be able to take advantage of 

Freerunner’s advanced software allowing them to filter internet content to suit 

customer needs. 

Based on Open Source technology, the Freerunner network represents an 

evolution in Wifi. It has a distributed network architecture, no data centres 

and therefore no single point of failure ensuring maximum reliability, a faster 

connection and a low operating cost. 

Key Management Owen Geddes Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch owen.geddes@freerunnernet.com 

Website www.freerunr.com 



61


62 

Garlik 


Garlik has developed Web 3.0 search engine technology that finds all references 

to you and your personal data on the Web, in private databases and other 

data locations. Having assembled the data, Garlik can provide a comprehensive 

report that highlights the extent the user is vulnerable to identity theft through 

the proliferation of his/her personal data. 

Garlik was founded by Mike Harris, founding CEO of Egg plc, Tom Ilube, former 

Egg CIO and the former British Computer Society president Professor nigel 

Shadbolt. As the first company to develop a web-scale commercial application 

of semantic technology, Garlik enables consumers to understand what 

information about them is in the public domain and manage their identities 

online. 

Garlik has appointed a panel of world-class ID protection and technology 

experts to advise the business including Professor Wendy Hall CBE from the 

university of Southampton; Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World 

Wide Web; Simon Davies, director of Privacy International; and Daniel Cooper, 

renowned privacy lawyer with Covington & Burling. 

Key Management Mike Harris Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch Victoria Melville 

victoria@melvillecommunications.co.uk 

Website www.garlik.com 


Gigle Semiconductor 


Gigle is a fabless semiconductor company based in the uK, Spain and uSA 

which has developed a very low cost, single chip solution. This solution enables 

consumers to connect electronic devices such as routers, set-tops boxes and 

televisions around the home using existing mains (“Power-line”), coax or 

phone lines rather than having to install new cables. 

The company’s “HD Anywire” technology makes multi-media networking 

reliable, cost-effective and self-installing, enabling the easy delivery and 

distribution of high-definition content and services around the home. The 

market for this technology is currently over $200m per annum and is forecast 

to grow beyond $1bn per annum in due course. 

Gigle launched its first chip in the summer of 2009 and has already achieved 

a major commercial milestone with the launch of the world’s first Gigabit 

product by networking specialist Belkin. Belkin selected Gigle’s innovative 

networking chip to power its Gigabit Powerline networking Adapters which 

have been launched in the united States and Europe. Gigle’s technology results 

in a product which has five times the throughput of rivals at a lower cost, 

resulting in the best-performing and highest quality HD pictures. 

Gigle is well-placed for growth as the demand for high-speed, multi-media 

networking solutions increases on the back of the rising popularity of online 

gaming, picture storage and internet music and videos from the likes of Apple 

iTunes and BBC iPlayer. 

Key Management Juan Carlos Riveiro 

President & Chief Executive Officer 


Website www.gigle.biz 



63


64 

Icera 


Icera has developed the world’s fi rst market proven, high performance soft 

modem technology for mobile broadband phone and data devices. These 

include mobile broadband datacards and uSB sticks, cellular modules for 

laptops and mobile internet devices. Icera’s soft modem also provides the ideal 

slim modem for high performance smartphones. 

Icera’s platform solutions give manufacturers maximum fl exibility to deliver 

differentiated, high performance mobile broadband devices in the shortest time 

possible. 

Founded in 2002 by a highly experienced group of semiconductor executives, 

the company is staffed by a team with world-leading expertise in custom 

processor design, wireless algorithm development, circuit design and wireless 

handset platform integration. Icera, which has raised venture funding totalling 

over $100M to date, is headquartered in Bristol uK, with design locations in the 

uK, France, Canada and uS, and with sales and support in Japan, Taiwan, Korea, 

the uS and Europe. 

Key Management Stan Boland Chief Executive Offi cer 

Get in Touch Sally Doherty press@icerasemi.com 

Website www.icerasemi.com 


i-nexus 

Nominated by Antrak Capital 

i-nexus is a Coventry based software company which sells a software solution 

for program and performance management. 

The software integrates the sub-disciplines required in programme 

management to company-wide scorecards and KPIs management and the 

company continues to successfully win major new business in Europe and the 

uS. 

The original i-nexus prototype was developed by Marconi Corporation 

(acquired by Ericsson in 2006), a telecommunications company based in the 

uK, to manage its own performance improvement initiative. It was recognised 

that the solution presented extended well beyond one enterprise. This initiative 

was launched and managed by Paul Docherty, who became a co-founder and 

the CEO of i-nexus. 

Key Management Paul Docherty Co-founder & Chief Executive Officer 

Rex Harrison Co-founder & Chief Financial Officer 

Get in Touch info@i-nexus.com 

Website www.i-nexus.co.uk 



65


66 

ip.access 


SEP 

ip.access designs and sells miniature mobile phone base stations that are 

deployed inside offi ces (picocells) and homes (femtocells) to solve the issue of 

poor indoor cellular coverage. 

The current market for small base stations is forecast to grow very rapidly over 

the next few years to over 30m units per annum. This growth is due to the 

increasing demand for 3G bandwidth as a result of the explosion in use of 

laptop 3G dongles and devices such as the Apple iphone; combined with the 

fact that high speed 3G signals penetrate buildings less well than 2G. networks 

operators see low cost base stations, the size of consumer internet routers, as 

a solution to this coverage issue; evidenced by the recent launch by market 

leader, Vodafone in the uK of their “Signal Booster” device which plugs into a 

consumer’s home router. 

SEP is a lead investor in ip.access which has won numerous industry awards 

including the Best Radio Access Product at the 2007 Global Mobile Awards. It 

is one of the leading vendors in the world and has equipment being deployed 

by a signifi cant number of operators including Smart in the Philippines, KPn in 

the netherlands, Telefónica O2 in the Czech Republic and T-Mobile and AT&T 

in the uSA. 

Key Management Stephen Mallinson Chief Executive Offi cer 


Website www.ipaccess.com 


Metaforic 

Nominated by Pentech VC 

Metaforic is a digital security firm that has developed anti-hacking products 

to protect software applications, digital rights management systems, client 

applications and license management systems. 

Headquartered in Glasgow, Scotland, with offices in San Jose, California, 

Metaforic was founded in 2006 by industry veterans Andrew McLennan, Linda 

MacKellar and neil Stewart. 

Metaforic’s main product, MetaFortress, armours applications from the inside 

out, preventing and protecting against all forms of tampering, piracy and the 

most sophisticated hacking attacks. Metaforic’s software is easy to use and 

offers extreme protection with a near to zero performance impact. 

Key Management Andrew McLennan Chief Executive Officer 

Linda MacKellar Chief Operating Officer 

Neil Stewart Chief Technical Officer 


Website www.metaforic.com 



67


68 

Nomad 


nomad is a leading provider of data communications in the transportation 

sector. 

With low-cost, high speed data network capabilities, nomad offers a variety of 

enhanced services to improve communication and monitoring of fl eets. The 

company’s specialist knowledge and experienced technical personnel means 

that they can offer a wider range of solutions enabled for on board services and 

applications, including passenger Wifi , entertainment and content, as well as real 

time CCTV and ticketing. 

Key Management Graeme Lowdon Chief Executive Offi cer 


Website www.uknomad.com 


Nujira 


nujira is a producer of super high effi ciency power amplifi ers for mobile base 

stations and handsets. 

nujira’s High Accuracy Tracking Power Modulators enable equipment vendors 

to design fl exible, power-effi cient, small, cheap base stations and transmitters 

that meet the increasingly demanding needs of operators and broadcasters 

worldwide. 

For cellular handsets, nujira is working in partnership with established radio 

frequency subsystem vendors to enable the design of cost-effective multimode, 

multi-band handsets with extended battery life. 

Key Management Tim Haynes Chief Executive Offi cer 


Website www.nujira.com 



69


70 

picoChip 


picoChip designs and sells digital signal processing silicon chips, a key 

component for wireless communications. The company is a leading vendor 

in the multi-core Digital Signal Processing (DSP) market. The company’s initial 

focus is chips for small and medium-sized mobile phone base stations. 

The company’s product is the lowest cost and most power efficient on the 

market; consequently picoChip has over 100 customers including seven of 

the top ten telecoms equipment makers. Equipment incorporating picoChip 

products is now in use by over one hundred network operators. An exciting 

new market for picoChip is the femtocell or home base station market in which 

picoChip has designs wins in over 80% of the equipment vendors. Overall the 

market opportunity per annum to picoChip is in excess of $1bn. 

The Bath-based company has built a global presence that includes offices in the 

uSA and China, development sites in Europe and China, and sales and support 

operations across the globe. 

Regarded by the industry as a leader in its field, picoChip has won numerous 

awards and the company’s revenue is growing revenue. 

Key Management Nigel Toon President & Chief Executive Officer 


Website www.picochip.com 


PlasticLogic 


PlasticLogic is a technology company which has created a range of products 

enabling immediate information access, organisation and consumption. The 

company aims to lead a revolution in the way people acquire, organise and 

consume information. 

Plastic Logic has raised over $200M in fi nancing from top-tier venture funding 

sources in Asia, Europe and the u.S. The company is using the funds to 

complete product development in uK and the uSA, to build a specialised, 

scalable production facility in Germany and to establish go-to-market teams. 

Key Management Richard Archuleta Chief Executive Offi cer 

Get in Touch Bev Pharr bev.pharr@plasticlogic.com 

Website www.plasticlogic.com 



71


72 

Secerno 


Secerno is a technology company active in database control. Secerno’s 

solutions are the new approach to controlling how data in databases is 

accessed. Secerno’s product, DataWall, includes database activity monitoring, 

database policy enforcement and database compliance auditing solutions. 

These are available as a range of either hardware or virtual appliances. 

Secerno DataWall enforces a 100% positive security policy of only approved 

behaviour, with the option to log, alert, block or substitute database requests. 

Policy channels enable strategists and administrators to add new and complex 

layers of rules that map policy to a company’s specifi c business needs. 

The company provides database protection and database compliance solutions 

to customers across most industries, including fi nancial services, healthcare & 

pharmaceuticals, retail, government agencies and departments. 

Secerno’s headquarters are in Oxford, uK and Bedminster, new Jersey. 

Key Management Steve Hurn Chief Executive Offi cer 

Eddie Minshull Chairman 

Get in Touch Amanda Chesters amanda.chesters@secerno.com 

Website www.secerno.com 


TestPlant 


TestPlant has developed software that automates the process for testing other 

software products. TestPlant’s software mimics the actions of an end user, 

enabling it to test software through the end user interface (as compared to 

testing via the code). This means that, highly manual elements of the software 

testing process - which account for up to 80% of all testing - can now be 

automated which in turn reduces the time taken to test new software products 

by up to 80%. 

TestPlant is an international software business with an established customer 

base of leading IT corporations and defence organizations. The company 

works with many of the world’s leading software developers including 16 

Fortune 500 companies. 

TestPlant is headquartered in London, with an office in Washington DC and 

a development centre in Boulder, Colorado. In a move into the fast growing 

automated software testing tools market, TestPlant acquired Redstone 

Software, the original creators of eggPlant, an automated test software tool. . 

Key Management Jon Richards Chairman 

George Mackintosh Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch george.mackintosh@testplant.com 

Website www.testplant.com 



73


74 

Tinglobal 

Nominated by Shackleton Ventures 

Tinglobal buys, refurbishes and sells used mid-range computer and networking 

equipment. 

The company works with hardware manufacturers, maintainers, resellers, 

outsourcing companies and traders across the globe and has become an 

integral part of the overall supply chain. 

Remarketing of hardware allows Tinglobal clients to maximise their returnon-investment 

from IT investments. The company provides strong technical 

advice, coupled with a high standard of engineering and logistics. 

The company has an international customer base and has enjoyed solid 

revenue and profit growth in recent years. Tinglobal, previously a 3i company, is 

now actively supported by Shackleton Ventures. 

Key Management Rod Haddrell Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch rodh@tindirect.com 

Website www.tinglobal.com 


XMOS 


XMOS is a fabless semiconductor company, which designs in software, rather 

than hard wired in silicon. 

The company‘s high performance, predictable processors makes it leader in 

event-driven processors for digital electronics. They allow complete systems to 

be implemented in software using interface, DSP and control code. 

XMOS is an enabling technology for the open source hardware community. 

Designs, including uSB, Ethernet, and SD-RAM controllers, are available in an 

ever-expanding library of open source code. Free to download, the XMOS 

development tools are supported by a vibrant community of digital designers 

and software engineers. 

XMOS is based in Bristol, uK, California, uSA, and Chennai, India with sales 

offi ces and representatives across the world. 

Key Management James Foster Chief Executive Offi cer 

Get in Touch Sally Doherty sally@xmos.com 

Website www.xmos.com 



75


76 

Yuuguu Limited 


yuuguu provides software to allow users to share their computer remotely. 

yuuguu (from the Japanese word for fusion) was founded by colleagues Anish 

Kapoor and Philip Hemsted who became frustrated by the challenge of working 

together remotely and not being able to see or share each other’s computer 

screens in real time. 

yuuguu was established as a solution to help people work together remotely, 

through any firewall, across different platforms, with as many colleagues as 

needed, just as if they were sitting right next to each other. 

The company’s vision stretches far beyond the world of work. yuuguu’s unique, 

easy to install features can give anybody the freedom to be together, whether 

at work or play, even when they’re not. 

Enterprise Ventures’ RisingStars Growth Fund first invested in the company in 

October 2006. 

Key Management Anish Kapoor Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder 

Alastair Walmsley Director of Finance 

Get in Touch anish.kapoor@yuuguu.com 

Website www.yuuguu.co.uk 


Zeus 

Nominated by DFJ Espirit 

SEP 

Zeus is a software company that develops and sells highly optimized web site 

infrastructure software allowing website owners to visualize, manipulate and 

balance the flow of traffic to their web-enabled applications. The product 

helps to ensure consistently robust website performance and customer 

experience, particularly for sites with a significant amount of traffic. 

The company provides the competitive advantage businesses need by making 

its online services faster, more reliable, more secure and easier to manage. Zeus 

software can be deployed on industry standard hardware, virtual machines and 

any Cloud platform. On these standard platforms Zeus’s application manager 

has the highest performance in the market. 

Zeus holds strategic partnerships with world-class companies such as IBM, Dell, 

HP, Oracle, and VMware. Zeus powers a large number of the highest profile 

sites across the world including the BBC, ITV, Play.com, BT, Skyscanner and 

Disney.com 

Since SEP’s investment Zeus has grown revenue quickly in what is a significant 

and growing market. The company is based in Cambridge, uK and Mountain 

View, California. 

Key Management Paul Brennan Chief Executive Officer 


Website www.zeus.com 



77

mEDIcAl 

EquIpmEnT 

& SERvIcES 




SERvIcES 

cOmpuTER 


& TElEcOmS 


& SERvIcES 


& mInIng 



REcREATIOn 

& lEISuRE 


BuSInESSES

CyDen 

Nominated by Longbow Capital LLP 

CyDen develops hair removal products based on its iPulse technology. 

iPulse utilises intense pulsed light technology to deliver a high level of clinical 

performance at low cost and is more efficient than other devices in the 

marketplace. 

This technology comes from the same team of scientists and innovators who 

originated the science of light-based hair removal more than 20 years ago and 

who have been at the forefront of the industry ever since. 

CyDen’s experts are the authors of over 40 patents in the light-based therapy 

field, while their products were the first light-based devices to win uS FDA 

approval for hair removal, non-ablative wrinkle reduction and the treatment 

of acne. The company’s home-use, Boots-branded ‘Smooth Skin’ device is 

available to buy in Boots stores nationwide. 

Key Management Scott Wotherspoon Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch Ron Petersen rpetersen@cyden.co.uk 

Website www.cyden.co.uk 


MEDICAL EquIPMEnT & SERVICES 

81


82 

Daysoft ® 


Daysoft® is a uK based pioneer in contact lens design, manufacture and sale of 

high specification daily disposable contact lenses. 

As a result of the company’s vertical integration and direct to consumer internet 

sales model, the business is able to provide the lowest cost contact lenses in the 

world. The global contact lens market is currently estimated at over $3 billion 

per annum with daily disposables becoming the most common contact lens 

modality in the uK. 

Daysoft lenses are sold direct to wearers via its website and via opticians in as 

many as 27 countries. SEP has a close relationship with the company having 

successfully the backed Chairman’s (Ron Hamilton) previous company, Award 

which was sold to Bausch & Lomb in 1996 in a multi-million pound exit which 

earned the title ‘Venture of the year.’ 

Daysoft is profitable and growing fast, increasing orders by 10% per month. 

The company has now produced and distributed more than 200 million lenses 

worldwide, winning customers with a combination of high quality product, 24 

hour online ordering, and cost savings of as much as 50% compared to rivals. 

Key Management Ron Hamilton Chairman 

Mark Hegarty Managing Director 

Get in Touch mark.hegarty@daysoftlenses.com 

Website www.daysoftcontactlenses.com 


Glysure 


Founded in 2006, Glysure is developing a continuous blood glucose sensor for 

patients in intensive care with the goal of reducing patient mortality. 

In 2001, work on “tight glycemic control” (“TGC”) established a new standard 

in post-surgical care by showing that managing blood glucose levels within 

tight normal ranges yielded clear improvements in patient outcomes (including 

a 46% reduction in incidence of sepsis, a 41 % reduction in renal failure and a 

34% reduction in in-patient mortality). 

Maintaining glucose levels within the target range is diffi cult using current 

technologies which require frequent measurements to guard against 

hypoglycemia and the risk of adverse outcomes, including death. Given 

the practical limitations of resource constraints, nursing workloads and 

current technologies, hospitals have struggled with the development and 

implementation of safe and effective TGC protocols. 

GlySure is developing a continuous in vivo glucose monitoring system using 

an intravascular, optical fl orescence based sensor to meet the worldwide 

demand for implementation of TGC/IIT. The company has demonstrated 

highly accurate sensors and prototype systems in vitro and in vivo and is now 

preparing for clinical approval trials. 

Key Management Chris Jones Chief Executive Offi cer 

Barry Crane Chief Technical Offi cer 

Get in Touch bcrane@glysure.com 

Website www.glysure.com 



83


84 

Healthcare Learning 

Company Ltd 

Nominated by Westbridge Fund Managers 

The Healthcare Learning Company (HLC) provides e-learning and training 

materials into the dental and wider healthcare sector. 

HLC has succeeded in establishing itself as a provider of interactive teaching 

and online courses for healthcare professionals to meet their continuing 

professional development and post graduate requirements throughout their 

careers. 

HLC publishes weekly online newsletters and “Dental Tribune” - the uK’s first and 

only weekly printed newspaper for dentists. These publications are dedicated to 

the educational needs of healthcare practitioners and professionals. 

The company was incorporated in 2000 under the name of Smile-on Holdings 

Ltd, changing its name to Healthcare Learning Company Ltd in September 

2005. Westbridge Capital backed the Healthcare Learning Company in 2008. 

Key Management Noam Tamir Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch noam@smile-on.com 

Website www.healthcare-learning.com 


Medtrade Products Ltd 

Nominated by The Summit Group Ltd 

Medtrade Products Ltd is a specialist provider for advanced wound care 

products such as surgical and non-surgical dressings, scar treatments and 

haemostats. 

The company was founded in 1999 by Craig Hardy and his wife, who is the 

current operations director. Since then Medtrade has grown sales to over 

£5 million (2009), the vast majority of which are exports; has increased 

staff numbers five-fold; and is exploiting a revolutionary haemostat product 

marketed as Celox which is in use in the uS military and first responders/ 

emergency services. 

The Summit Group Limited first invested £100,000 in 2000 with further 

investments of £130,000 in 2005 and £100,000 in 2008 (the latter two 

investments were part of rounds of £400,000 in each case). 

Key Management Craig Hardy Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch craig.hardy@medtrade.co.uk 

Website www.medtrade.co.uk 

The Summit Group 



85


86 

Mirada Medical 


Mirada Medical is a technology provider in the area of multi-modality medical 

imaging. 

Mirada Medical, a spin out from Siemens in 2001, has developed software that 

allows images from multiple sources to be combined to provide greater clinical 

certainty in diagnosis and treatment of cancer. Images from a patient can be 

combined to show not only if a cancer is present, but also its precise location 

relative to bones and organs. This provides surgeons and radiologists with a 

more complete picture, thereby improving the quality of information available 

when managing the patient’s condition. 

Mirada is a globally recognized brand name in advanced medical imaging 

and diagnostics. As a specialist provider of molecular imaging and fusion 

applications, Mirada Medical has had been recognised for its role in introducing 

functional imaging into radiology. 

Key Management Hugh Bettesworth Chief Executive Officer 

Gail Buswell Chief Financial Officer & 

Chief Operating Officer 

Get in Touch hugh.bettesworth@mirada-medical.com 

Website www.mirada-medical.com 


Monica Healthcare 

Nominated by Catapult Venture Managers 

Monica Healthcare has developed a technology which can successfully 

monitor the heart rate of an unborn baby for long periods allowing an 

improved standard of obstetric care for both mother and baby. The 

technology, which is wireless, allows the mother to be able to move around 

as normal, something that is not possible with existing techniques such as 

ultrasound which require the mother to be immobile next to a large unit in a 

hospital. 

Monica Healthcare was formed in May 2005. After a £500k seed fundraising 

exercise, a £1million second round funding was raised in May 2007. Monica 

Healthcare is the culmination of 15 years of research at the School of Electrical 

and Electronic Engineering and the School of Human Development at the 

university of nottingham, uK. 

Key Management Dr Carl Barrett Chief Executive Officer 

Dr Jean François Pieri Chief Technical Officer 

Get in Touch carl.barrett@monicahealthcare.com 

Website www.monicahealthcare.com 



87


88 

Nanosight 

Nominated by Shackleton Ventures 

nanosight makes instruments that analyse nano-particles which are sold to 

companies developing nano-materials and to universities, using direct sales in 

the uK and distributors elsewhere. 

Founding in 2002, nanosight is working with Oxford university on a project 

funded by the Wellcome Trust to identify heart diseases and cancer at a very 

early stage. nanosight’s technology is also capable of automatic detection of 

viruses. Sales are growing rapidly; they grew 70% in 2008 and are on track to 

more than double in 2009. 

The company was funded in its early days by seed capital from nESTA and 

Strathdon Investments; the company is now backed by Shackleton Ventures. 

nanosight has also raised funds from angel investors. 

Key Management John Knowles Chairman 

Get in Touch Johnknowles1@btinternet.com 

Website www.nanosightuk.co.uk 


Neoss 


neoss has developed a simple, yet comprehensive, dental implant system for 

replacing missing teeth. The patented system is built around a single platform 

which allows dental professionals to work with different implant diameters but 

only one set of instruments and fewer prosthetic components makings it easy 

to use in comparison to other systems. neoss continues to invest in research 

and development and recently launched a new implant that has a unique new 

surface treatment, allowing more rapid healing and bone formation. 

Co-founded in 2000 by a leading uK dental academic and a Swedish 

technologist, neoss now employs over 110 people with a turnover of £11.8m 

and was placed 20th in the ‘Sunday Times Tech Track 100’ fastest growing 

technology companies in 2008. It is headquartered in Harrogate with 

operations in Europe, north America, Australia and Japan and continues to look 

for opportunities to expand its global presence. 

In addition to MMC Ventures the business is also backed by Delta Partners 

and Medtronic Inc. as well as a number of high net worth individuals. The total 

investment to date is in excess of £20m 

Key Management Michael J Dormer Executive Chairman 

Professor Neil Meredith Chief Executive Officer 

Guy Leaver Chief Financial Officer 

Get in Touch mike.dormer@neoss.com 

Website www.neoss.com 



89


90 

The Practice 


The Practice is one of the leading primary care companies in the uK, providing 

community-based healthcare for the nHS. The company delivers specialist 

clinical services, such as sexual health and dermatology, nationwide, for GPs, 

the Ministry of Defence and Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) as well as operating a 

growing network of GP surgeries and walk-in centres. 

Through its property division, The Practice owns GP surgeries and other medical 

facilities 

Key Management Peter Watts Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch peter.watts@thepracticeplc.com 

Website www.thepracticeplc.com 


Prosurgics 

Nominated by LA Investments 

Prosurgics is a uK developer of a new wave of surgical instruments such as 

Pathfinder, an image-guided intelligent robot for neurosurgery and Freehand, 

an endoscopic positioner & manipulator. The company has a strong patent 

portfolio and continues to pioneer new approaches in surgical technology. 

Through the use of the company’s surgical robots, doctors are able to perform 

less invasive interventions, faster surgery and more precise targeting. In 

addition, important financial benefits can be realised by hospitals and other 

healthcare providers. 

Prosurgics is an international company with sales across four continents and an 

American subsidiary. 

Key Management Bill Perry President 

Chris Robertson Global Marketing & Business 

Development Director 

Get in Touch crobertson@prosurgics.com 

Website www.prosurgics.com 



91


92 

Provexis 


Provexis Limited develops and licenses scientifically-proven functional food, 

medical food and dietary supplement technologies. A further technology for 

the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease was added to the portfolio in 

2003 by way of a joint venture with the university of Liverpool. 

The company was founded in 1999 by Dr Bill Mullen of Angle plc. Enterprise 

Ventures’ RisingStars Growth Fund first invested in the company in late 2002 

to support the early research and development of its CardioFlow® technology 

with an initial early stage investment of £300,000. The backer has continued 

to invest in and support the development of the company and appointed 

Jonathan Diggines, CEO of Enterprise Ventures, to the Board. 

In 2005 Provexis merged with nutrinnovator plc resulting in the existing AIMlisted 

Provexis plc entity.. 

Key Management Stephen Moon Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch stephen.moon@provexis.com 

Website www.provexis.org 


Sirigen 


Sirigen’s technology is based on a novel form of conductive polymers that 

have unique light harvesting properties which facilitate the amplification of light 

sources passed through them. Sirigen is applying this technology to focus on 

diagnostic and other healthcare applications. 

Sirigen’s enabling technology represents amplifies the sensitivity of a wide 

range of existing instrumentation and detection platforms by up to 100 fold. 

The company’s technology is applicable to the drug discovery industry which 

can use Sirigen to test the efficacy of new drugs; the life sciences industry 

which can use Sirigen to develop new detection platforms; and the diagnostics 

industry, which can work with Sirigen to optimise existing diagnostic 

techniques and to develop the next generation of diagnostic tools. 

Key Management Nick Kerton Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch nick.kerton@sirigen.com 

Website www.sirigen.com 



93


94 

Stanmore Implants 

Worldwide 

Nominated by Abingworth 

Stanmore Implants is an orthopaedic company focused on saving and restoring 

the function of limbs and joints. 

The company provides patient-specific and standardised orthopaedic implants 

for limb salvage, complex joint replacement, and prosthetic attachment. 

Stanmore has developed an approach to securing prosthesis to the skeleton 

for patients who have lost limbs through trauma or disease. The technology 

enables smooth integration with the skin and no infection or scar retraction, 

which are common problems with prosthetics. Patients are able to sense heat 

and vibration through the replacement limb. 

Based in Stanmore (north of London), and co-located with the Royal national 

Orthopaedic Hospital and Centre for Biomedical Engineering, the company 

provides advanced solutions for specialised orthopaedic procedures. 

Key Management Brian Steer Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch Julie Campbell julie.campbell@stanmoreimplants.com 

Website www.stanmoreimplants.com 




95

mETAlS, 

plASTIcS 

& mInIng 




SERvIcES 

cOmpuTER 


& TElEcOmS 


& SERvIcES 


& mInIng 



REcREATIOn 

& lEISuRE 


BuSInESSES

ARKeX 


SEP is a lead investor in uK based ARKeX, a world leader in geophysical surveys 

and services for the oil, gas and mining industries which was originally spun out 

of Oxford Instruments. 

The business has developed highly-sensitive gravity gradiometry technology, 

which, combined with patented data processing and interpretation methods, 

results in effective airborne exploration of potential new oil, gas or mineral 

reserves based on sensing their gravitational signatures. Its Blueqube surveys 

provide a high resolution and accurate picture of sub-surface geology, reducing 

uncertainty and risk for clients and enabling them to make better-informed 

decisions on exploration work. 

ARKeX is operating in a multi-billion dollar global survey market and has won a 

significant number of new commercial contracts from multinational oil and gas 

clients despite the major fall in oil prices in the last 12 months. The company 

recently secured a major three year supply contract with Algerian state oil and 

gas company Sonatrach. 

Key Management Kitty Hall Chief Executive Officer 

John Siegfried Chief Operating Officer 

Get in Touch enquiries@arkex.com 

Website www.arkex.com 


METALS, PLASTICS & MInInG 

99


100 

MBA Polymers 

Nominated by Doughty Hanson & Co 

MBA Polymers develops technology for the recovery of high value engineering 

plastics from complex durable goods streams such as computers, electronics, 

appliances, and automobiles. 

The company was founded in 1994 by Dr. Michael Biddle and Mr. Trip Allen 

to expand the research capabilities in the area of plastics recycling and to 

develop a commercial process for recovering plastics from complex streams 

of materials. The company, located in Richmond, California, operates a 90,000 

foot state-of-the-art research and commercial recycling operation. 

The company has received considerable support from a wide variety of 

stakeholders, including The American Plastics Council, the computer and 

electronics industry and federal agencies such as DOE, DOC, and EPA. 

Key Management Dr Michael Biddle President 

Get in Touch info@mbapolymers.com 

Website www.mbapolymers.com 


Metalysis 



Metalysis is the uK’s leading technology business for the global manufacture of 

special metals and alloys. using the FFC Process, the company has developed 

an important new technology for producing titanium, tantalum and other 

metals from the oxide. 

When compared to conventional technologies, Metalysis’s disruptive 

technology opens up a cheaper, less capital intensive and more 

environmentally favourable route to produce titanium, tantalum, and related 

high value alloys. Metalysis owns the worldwide exclusive exploitation rights to 

the FFC Process. 

While focused mainly at present on scaling up its innovative technology, the 

Metalysis business is already supplying low volumes of metallurgical grade 

powders. From 2010 the company will embark upon the commercialisation 

of its technology to compete with, and gain market share from, established 

production processes. 

The company’s South yorkshire base is the focal point for R&D, technology 

scale-up, IPR management and commercialisation of the FFC process. From 

its base Metalysis will manage a worldwide network of joint venture businesses 

and direct licences each exploiting one metal, application or alloy group. 

Key Management Mark Bertolini Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch Harry Pepper harry.pepper@metalysis.com 

Website www.metalysis.com 



101


102 

Midland Industrial 

Glass 

Nominated by Midven 

Midland Industrial Glass Limited is a manufacturing company, employing 50 

people, located in the Black Country. It offers a bespoke service to customers 

providing items in toughened float and mirror glass to market sectors including: 

white goods, shop fitting, lighting, transport and leisure. 

In early 2005 the company’s second tier management team approached 

Midven seeking a management buyout. The buyout was completed without 

insolvency proceedings and in the first full financial year following the buyout 

the Company achieved a pre tax profit of £180,000 on £2.8m turnover and the 

following year, £480,000 on £3.2m turnover. 

Key Management Alan Taylor Managing Director 

Get in Touch enquire@miglass.com 

Website www.miglass.com 


Novel Polymers 



novel Polymers (nPS) was founded in november 2003 in order to exploit 

polymer technology invented and developed by uK Government research 

laboratories. Having established an exclusive licence to the technology, nPS has 

been working to apply it to specific applications across many industries. 

Initially, the company targeted applications such as adhesion promotion 

coatings, electrochemical membranes and solid electrolytes. nPS has since 

developed its technology for many other applications. The company works in 

partnership with industrial and product companies to develop products and 

services for new and existing markets. 

Partnerships now exist between nPS and large industrial companies active in 

many areas, including paper additives, paint, flooring, automotive, building 

materials and carbon industries. 

In a very short period of time, the business has gone from being a small 

research & development company to a cutting-edge product company with a 

large number of applicable markets. 

Key Management James Rolfe Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch info@novelpolymers.com 

Website www.novelpolymers.com 



103






SERvIcES 

cOmpuTER 


& TElEcOmS 


& SERvIcES 


& mInIng 



REcREATIOn 

& lEISuRE 


BuSInESSES

ApaTech 

Nominated by MTI Firms 

ApaTech was established in 2001 and is an orthobiologics company. The 

company has developed a silicate substituted calcium phosphate bone graft 

material, Actifuse, the first of a new class of synthetic bone graft materials that 

combine osteoconductive, osteostimulatory and bioactive qualities resulting in 

accelerated bone growth. 

The company is backed by MTI, 3i and Healthcor; since its formation the 

company has raised more than uS$60m from investors. 

ApaTech has received several corporate business and research awards. Most 

recently it was awarded the Frost & Sullivan ‘2009 north American Biologics 

Company of the year’. In 2007 and 2008 ApaTech was recognized as Britain’s 

fastest growing medical technology company in the Sunday Times Fast Track 

100 fastest growing private companies review. 

ApaTech has operations in London (England), Massachusetts (uSA) and Berlin 

(Germany). 

Key Management Simon Cartmell Chief Executive Officer 

Bruce Powell Chief Financial Officer 

Get in Touch simon.cartmell@apatech.com 

Website www.apatech.com 


PHARMACEuTICALS & BIOTECHnOLOGy 

107


108 

Astex Therapeutics 


Astex Therapeutics is a fragment based drug discovery company which 

discovers and develops small molecule therapeutic drugs with a focus on 

oncology and anti-viral compounds. 

The company has three products in the clinic and two at the pre-clinical stage. 

All of these products were discovered and developed using Astex’s proprietary 

drug discovery technology. 

In addition to its research programmes, Astex’s productivity in drug discovery 

has been endorsed through numerous partnerships with major pharmaceutical 

companies, including AstraZeneca, Bayer-Schering, Boehringer Ingelheim, 

novartis and Janssen Pharmaceutica.. 

Astex has raised over £70m in three funding rounds. VC investors are 

Abingworth, Oxford BioScience, Apax, GIMV, Alta Partners and Advent 

International. The Company also has significant Corporate Investors: Bayer- 

Schering, novartis and Johnson & Johnson Development Corporation. 

Key Management Harren Jhoti Chief Executive Officer 

John Aston Chief Financial Officer 

Martin Buckland Chief Business Officer 

Get in Touch Jeremy Carmichael 

j .carmichael@astex-therapeutics.com 

Website www.astex-therapeutics.com 


BioVex 


BioVex is a biotechnology company focused on the development and 

commercialisation of treatments for cancer and the prevention of infectious 

diseases. Global sales of cancer therapies grew to $48.2 billion in 2008, an 

increase of 11% on 2007 figures. BioVex’s platform technology has the 

potential to address a $6 billion market opportunity across a range of cancers. 

OncoVEX, the lead product, now in phase III clinical trials, is designed to 

replicate in solid tumours, triggering cancer cell death, while helping the 

patient’s own immune system to fight the cancer. BioVex’s second product, 

ImmunoVEX, a preventative vaccine for genital herpes, applies the same 

underlying platform technology. The company has developed its own 

manufacturing facility with sufficient capacity for commercial launch. 

SEP first invested in BioVex in 2003 and is the only uK venture capital investor 

in the business. Biovex was named in ‘Fierce Biotech’ Magazine among its 

‘Fierce 15’ leading global biotech businesses. 

Key Management Philip Astley-Sparke President & 

Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch pastleysparke@biovex.com 

Website www.biovex.com 



109


110 

Cellnovo Limited 


Cellnovo is a visionary biotechnology company committed to bringing new 

freedom and ease-of-use to drug delivery. 

Cellnovo’s proprietary technology combines precise control of drug therapies 

with simple, intuitive operation. Patients benefit from greater portability and 

personalization, as well as more efficient management of life-saving therapies. 

The company’s wireless patch pump will be introduced to the diabetes market 

in 2009. 

Key Management William F. McKeon Chief Executive Officer 

Kelly Chessum Financial Operations 

Michael Graves Manufacturing 

Dr. Joseph Cefai Research & Development 

Get in Touch info@cellnovo.com 

Website www.cellnovo.com 


Cellzome 

Nominated by Atlas Venture 

Cellzome identifies new treatments for inflammatory diseases such as asthma. 

The company’s pipeline of small-molecule therapeutics is driven by a 

technology called Kinobeads which screens and profiles kinases in cells and 

tissues.. 

Cellzome has attracted and formed key strategic alliances with large 

pharmaceutical corporations such as GSK and Johnson & Johnson. Cellzome 

and GSK entered into a multi-million dollar global strategic alliance in 

September 2008. 

Key Management Timothy P. W. Edwards Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch info@cellzone.com 

Website www.cellzome.com 



111


112 

Destiny Pharma 

Nominated by Longbow Capital LLP 

Destiny Pharma is a pharmaceutical company focused on the development of 

novel medicines that represent a different approach to infectious disease. 

Destiny Pharma has developed a portfolio of drug compounds that have been 

shown to work in such a way that bacteria are unable to develop resistance 

to repeated dosing. The compounds are being developed in order to prevent 

and treat superbugs such as MRSA. MRSA in the community suggests that 

infections due to multidrug-resistant bacteria are set to rise even further. 

Traditional research has failed to fully address these problems. Destiny Pharma 

is pursuing revolutionary approaches to the prevention and treatment of these 

types of public health issues. 

Key Management Dr Bill Love Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch busdev@destinypharma.com 

Website www.destinypharma.com 


EpiStem Holdings Plc. 

Nominated by Calculus Capital 

EpiStem Holdings is a uK-based biotechnology company focused on 

developing therapies for diseases including cancer, gastrointestinal diseases 

and skin damage. 

The company’s expertise is centred on the regulation of adult stem cells 

located in epithelial tissue. As well as developing innovative therapeutic and 

diagnostic biomarkers, EpiStem has a successful contract research division 

which earns over 50% of its revenues from overseas customers. EpiStem has 

established working relationships with over 100 pharmaceutical companies. 

Calculus Capital (via its Early Intervening Services (EIS) funds) was the founder 

investor in the start-up company, the sole participant in a follow on funding in 

2001 and has provided financial support for EpiStem in later funding rounds. 

Key Management Matthew Walls Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch s.leonard@epistem.co.uk 

Website www.epistem.co.uk 



113


114 

Oxford BioTherapeutics 


Oxford BioTherapeutics is focused on the development of targeted medicines 

in the field of cancer. 

Formed in 2004, the company has signed strategic partnerships with the leading 

antibody companies Medarex, Biosite and Amgen to build a broad pipeline of 

novel antibody therapeutics using its unique Oxford Genome Anatomy Project 

platform. Oxford BioTherapeutics intends to develop companion diagnostics 

for selected antibody programmes. The company expects to improve disease 

management and treatment outcomes by integrating diagnostics into product 

development and commercialisation activities. 

Oxford BioTherapeutics is based near Oxford, uK. 

Key Management Dr. Christian Rohlff Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch execpa@oxbt.co.uk 

Website www.oxbt.co.uk 


Oxitec Limited 

Nominated by Oxford Capital Partners 

Oxitec Limited was founded in 2002 to develop and commercialize leading 

edge science and technology invented at the university of Oxford, namely 

environmentally friendly pest control. 

Oxitec has developed and patented a technology platform for the sterile insect 

technique. This platform is called RIDL and is the basis for providing effective 

and environment friendly pest control to agriculture and public health. Oxitec 

has generated product candidates for four insect pest control markets, and 

has advanced its lead candidate to the final testing phase of the development 

pathway in the uSA. 

The company’s approach to insect control was recognised by the Bill and 

Melinda Gates Foundation Grand Challenges for Global Health Initiative with 

an award as part of a $20 million consortium developing genetic strategies 

to control disease-carrying mosquitoes. They have also been recognised as a 

Technology Pioneer at the World Economic Forum. 

Key Management Haydn Parry Chief Executive Officer 

Luke Alphey Research Director 

Get in Touch haydn.parry@oxitec.com 

Website www.oxitec.com 



115


116 

R5pharmaceuticals Ltd 


R5pharmaceuticals was established in 2006 at BioCity in nottingham to provide 

a scientifically based formulation development, analytical chemistry and GMP 

service to the global biotech and pharmaceutical industry. 

R5 develops and manufactures new medicines and clinical trial materials for 

Phase 1 and Phase 2 clinical trials. Projects include most dosage forms. R5’s 

facility includes a sterile unit, aimed to capitalise on the shortage of sterile 

manufacturing capacity in Europe. The company also specialises in analytical 

services, with customers including northern Foods. 

Key Management Paul Titley Chief Executive Officer 

Dr David Jordan Chief Scientific Officer 

Get in Touch Dr Glenn Crocker g.crocker@biocity.co.uk 

Website www.r5pharma.com 


Renovo 

Nominated by Atlas Venture 

Renovo was founded in 2000, floated on the London Stock exchange in 2006 

and now employs over 170 full time members of staff. 

The company is the world leader in scar prevention and reduction research, 

developing pharmaceutical products to prevent and reduce scarring in the skin, 

blood vessels, eyes, nerves, internal organs, tendons and ligaments. The lead 

drug, Juvista, has demonstrated significantly reduced scarring in the skin, which 

alone represents a multi-million dollar market of unmet medical need. 

Renovo’s exceptional team of highly experienced and innovative scientists 

and clinicians have started to build their commercial capability. Based in 

Manchester at the heart of a thriving centre for pharmaceutical research, 

Renovo has built a portfolio of drugs that have reached phase 2 and phase 3 

of clinical development, as well as a rich pipeline at all stages of pre-clinical R&D. 

Key Management Professor Mark Ferguson Co- founder & 

Chief Executive Officer 

Simon Bielecki VP, Communications 

Get in Touch reception@renovo.co.uk 

Website www.renovo.com 



117


118 

Steritrox 

Nominated by WHEB Ventures 

Stockport based Steritrox has developed a chemical free room disinfectant 

process that kills pathogens including Listeria, C.Difficle, E. coli and MRSA and 

are followed by a quenching process which allows quick re-entry into a room. 

Steritrox’s technology safely harnesses the science of advanced oxidation to 

release hydroxyl free radicals that simultaneously disinfect both surface and 

airborne pathogens, effectively killing a broad spectrum of bacteria, viruses, 

moulds and yeasts. 

The company’s process is rapid, does not use expensive or harmful consumable 

chemicals and can be operated by janitorial personnel with little extra training. 

It is currently targeting the food processing and healthcare sectors. 

The technology has a wide application potential and the company is currently 

targeting the food processing industry through its Radical brand and the 

healthcare sector through its Meditrox brand. 

Key Management Peter Townley Managing Director 

Get in Touch Hazel Hart hazel.hart@steritrox.com 

Website www.steritrox.com 


Syntaxin Ltd 


Established in 2005, Syntaxin is a biopharmaceutical company that engineers 

and develops bacterial-based protein therapeutics for the treatment for 

neurological, inflammatory and endocrine diseases. 

The biopharmaceutical company’s proprietary technology platform enables 

the engineering of bacterial proteins by domain substitution, to produce novel 

cell-specific biotherapeutics that inhibit cell secretion. These products can have 

therapeutic effects in a wide range of indications. 

The company closed a $12M Series A financing in november 2005, led by 

Abingworth Management. In October 2007, Syntaxin secured a further $32M 

Series B financing led by investors including Abingworth. 

Key Management Patrick Doyle Chief Executive Officer 

Dr Eduard Holdener Non Executive Director 

Get in Touch info@syntaxin.com 

Website www.syntaxin.com 



119


120 

Vantia Therapeutics 

Nominated by SV Life Sciences Managers 

Vantia Therapeutics is an emerging pharmaceutical company developing 

novel, small molecule drugs targeting large, under-served medical markets. This 

leading research-based healthcare company is dedicated to improving clinical 

treatments through the development and commercialisation of medicines. 

Vantia was spun out from Ferring Research Ltd in 2008 and its product pipeline 

is driven by a management team with 21 years’ experience in this field. The 

company intends to develop its lead products over the next two years to the 

point where larger pharmaceutical companies will partner the programs from 

them. 

Based in Southampton Science Park, uK, Vantia’s team of 16 scientists have fully 

equipped facilities for medicinal chemistry, DMPK and lead discovery. 

Key Management Dr Jim Phillips Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch Carol Baker cmb@vantia.com 

Website www.vantiatherapeutics.com 




121

REcREATIOn 

& lEISuRE 




SERvIcES 

cOmpuTER 


& TElEcOmS 


& SERvIcES 


& mInIng 



REcREATIOn 

& lEISuRE 


BuSInESSES

City Screen Cinemas 


City Screen is a leading art house cinema operator, operating twelve cinemas, 

mainly in university cities and programs for various other cinemas groups. 

City Screen was formed in 1989 to challenge the multiplex cinema model and 

provide cinemas that serve their communities in city centre locations. It is now 

the leading independent cinema operator and the fourth largest in the uK. 

The company’s main focus has been on independent art-house and foreignlanguage 

films. Each of the cinemas is programmed in response to its local 

audience, and most of venues also show mainstream blockbusters and quality 

crossover titles. 

City Screen opened its first custom-built cinema, Clapham Picturehouse and 

since then has grown steadily through a mixture of new builds and acquisitions, 

particularly in university cities such as Oxford, Cambridge, London, Brighton and 

york. Albion Venture’s has made six cinema investments in conjunction with 

City Screen. 

Key Management Lyn Goleby Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch lyn.g@picturehouses.co.uk 

Website www.picturehouses.co.uk 


RECREATIOn & LEISuRE 

125


126 

Hubdub 

Nominated by Pentech Ventures 

Hubdub is a developer of software for prediction markets. The software 

allows users to make predictions about a wide range of events. In the past, 

Hubdubbers have correctly predicted the outcome of the uS presidential 

elections, including the complete distribution of the electoral college votes. But 

they have also correctly predicted more whimsical outcomes such as X-Factor 

results. 

Hubdub users stake virtual money (H$ - Hubdub dollars) on predictions about 

the outcomes of real news stories. If the user predicts correctly, he wins more; 

if he is wrong, he loses what he staked. The more Hubdub dollars you have the 

better Hubdubber you are (shown by your star level) and the higher on the 

leader boards you climb. 

Over recent months, Hubdub have developed partnerships with online media 

sites such as The Huffington Post, Thomson Reuters and The Independent who 

are providing Hubdub with even more topical and exciting questions on today’s 

news stories. 

Key Management Nigel Eccles Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch nigel@hubdub.com 

Website www.hubdub.com 


Leon Restaurants 

Nominated by Active Equity Partners 

Leon is a leading ‘fast-casual’ restaurant-chain providing high quality healthy 

food in a relaxed and stylish environment. The restaurants have received 

recognition from the RSPCA for the care the company takes sourcing their 

ingredients. 

The first Leon restaurant opened in September 2004 on Carnaby Street, 

London and the company has steadily grown into a chain of 9 restaurants – 8 

in London and 1 in Bluewater, Essex. Continued expansion plans are in place. 

In the last 3/4 years, the company has trebled in size and reached profitability. 

Current sales have reached £10 million and like-for-like growth is 10% 

Key Management Henry Dimbleby Founder & CEO 

John Vincent Founder 

Nick Evans Chairman 

Simon Drysdale Finance Director 

Get in Touch henry@leonrestaurants.co.uk 

Website www.leonrestaurants.co.uk 



127


128 

Mind Candy 

Nominated by Spark Ventures 

Mind Candy was founded in 2004 and develops multi-player online games. 

Mind Candy’s current focus is Moshi Monsters, a virtual world for children 

(7-11 year olds) where they can adopt their own online pet monster. Players 

nurture their monster, design its house, play educational puzzle games, as well 

as communicate with friends within a safe social network. Moshi Monsters is 

profitable and one of the fastest growing children’s sites in the world. There 

are currently over 5m registered users with 1m+ new players signing up every 

month. 

Mind Candy is based in London and develops new types of Social Multi-Player 

Online Games. The company’s first product was the groundbreaking Perplex 

City, and they are now focused on their new game, Moshi Monsters. 

The company has raised $10m in venture capital from Index Ventures, Accel 

Partners and Spark Ventures. 

Key Management Michael Smith Chief Executive Officer 

Ed Relf Head of Global Marketing 

Get in Touch ed@mindcandy.com 

Website www.mindcandy.com 


Quick.tv 


quick.tv has developed a toolset that allows digital media content to be 

transformed from plain video into an interactive experience. The quick.tv 

platform has been developed as a response to the rise in popularity of online 

video – now a prerequisite of any professional website. For example, users may 

be viewing an online video clip of a fashion show and by clicking on the model, 

will find more detail on the clothing and be directed to the point of purchase. 

Founded by entrepreneurs nick Bell and Tod yeadon, quick.tv is aimed at 

design, production and digital agencies, publishing companies as well as SMEs 

and ‘e-tailers’ who want to increase impulse purchasing. The technology is free 

and clients are able to choose from a selection of tariffs to publish the video 

through quick.tv’s hosting facility. 

northStar Equity Investors has backed the company since 2006 helping 

the business get off the ground with £60,000 Proof of Concept funding 

in December 2006, followed by £500,000 from its Co-Investment Fund in 

november 2007. nSEI has now pledged a further £210,000 as part of the 

latest round with the remainder coming from existing investors and new 

business angels. 

Key Management Nick Bell Co-founder 

Tod Yeadon Co-founder 

Get in Touch info@quick.tv 

Website www.quick.tv 



129


130 

The Weybridge Club Ltd 


The Weybridge Club Ltd (“TWCL”) owns and operates a premier health and 

fitness club in Weybridge, Surrey. 

The club is located on a 30 acre freehold site in the greenbelt and offers 

upmarket health club facilities in an attractive rural setting. It provides a state of 

the art gym, two exercise studios, pool, tennis courts, a five-a-side football pitch, 

beauty treatment rooms, lounge and crèche. 

The club is run by CEO Huw Watson, an experienced health and fitness club 

entrepreneur, who had previously developed a chain of 5 health and fitness 

clubs under the “Viva!” brand. Viva! was sold to Livingwell, itself acquired 

by Hilton Hotels Group. TWCL opened to members in May 2007 and its 

membership base continues to grow. 

Key Management Huw Watson Chief Executive Officer 


Website www.theweybridgeclub.com 




131

SpEcIAlITy 

OnlInE 

BuSInESSES 




SERvIcES 

cOmpuTER 


& TElEcOmS 


& SERvIcES 


& mInIng 



REcREATIOn 

& lEISuRE 


BuSInESSES

Active Hotels 


Active Hotels is one of Europe’s leading online reservation providers to the 

hotel industry, with over 52,000 hotels in thousands of destinations. Since 

1999, 5.9 million hotel bookings have been made using Active Hotels. 

Active Hotels’ instant, online booking service is fast, convenient and secure. 

Active Hotels shows up-to-the-minute availability so customers can book their 

hotel rooms online with complete confidence. 

Active Hotels was founded in 1999 in Cambridge, uK. In September 2004 

Close Venture Management Limited (now Albion Ventures LLP) exited its 

investment in Active Hotels Limited for an impressive return of over ten times 

its original stake, following the successful £90 million disposal to nasdaq listed 

PriceLine.com. The investment took less than three years to mature and 

represented £10.4 million exit proceeds on an original investment of £1m by 

Close. 

Key Management Dr Andrew Philipps Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch feedback@activehotels.com 

Website www.activehotels.com 


SPECIALITy OnLInE BuSInESSES 

135


136 

BrightSale 


Management 

BrightSale is an online estate agency that combines the low fee (0.5%) of a ‘sell 

it yourself’ agency with a full service offering backed by dedicated negotiators 

who handle each sale personally. BrightSale.com now boasts over 900 

property listings from the uK and overseas. The company is run by a team of 

experienced estate agents in Manchester and was first backed by Aspiration 

Capital Management in 2006. 

BrightSale uses technology to smooth the process wherever possible; for 

instance, customers can talk directly to a buyer or seller through a secure 

messaging system when necessary. 

Key Management Andy Etches Managing Director 

Get in Touch info@brightsale.co.uk 

Website www.brightsale.com 


Espresso Group Limited 

Nominated by Beringea 

Established in 1997, Espresso is one of the uK’s leading educational digital 

content companies and is used for teaching and learning in primary and 

secondary schools across the country.¬¬¬ The company has developed a range 

of multimedia teaching resources that are curriculum-aligned. 

Espresso was founded by Lewis Bronze, a former Editor of Blue Peter and 

received its first round of venture capital investment in 2001. After several 

further investments, revenues have grown from less than £1 million in 2001 

to almost £20 million. Employee numbers have also grown from a handful to 

approximately 150. 

Key Management Lewis Bronze Chief Executive Officer 

Richard McGrath Managing Director 

Get in Touch Heidi Delaloye hdelaloye@espresso.co.uk 

Website www.espresso.co.uk 



137


138 

Ethicalsuperstore.com 


Founded in 2004, www.ethicalsuperstore.com sells over 5,000 eco-friendly 

and fair trade products from around the world. All products carry an ethical or 

values-based credential such as ‘fair trade’, ‘organic’ or ‘recycled’. 

Operating in the uK’s £32 billion market for ethical and fair trade goods, the 

company has its sights set on becoming the web’s ‘ethical Amazon’ providing a 

place for eco-friendly, organic and fair trade products. 

northStar Equity Investors has invested £250k from its Co-Investment Fund 

(CoIF) as part of a merger deal in which it combined two of the uK’s biggest 

online ethical retailers; www.ethicalsuperstore.com and www.naturalcollection. 

com. nSEI has since supported the growth of www.ethicalsuperstore.com 

by investing a further £500k, in April 2007, and £550k in August last year, both 

through its CoIF Fund. 

Key Management Andy Refern Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch tim@pointov.com 

Website www.ethicalsuperstore.com 


Flirtomatic 

Nominated by Doughty House, 

Seraphim Capital 

Flirtomatic has pioneered the creation of social networks for people who 

do not know each other and allows users to message each other directly, 

immediately and in absolute privacy. 

Flirtomatic has created a free mobile service supported by a virtual economy 

where users spend money to get access to special features and options such as 

sending virtual gifts, personal promotion and location-based services. 

In the uK Flirtomatic has more than 1.5 million users who send over 1 million 

messages a day and generate over 140 million page impressions every 

month. The service has delivered over 1 billion advertisements and 2 billion 

advertisement impressions and is the second highest generator of data traffic 

on the Vodafone network. 

Key Management Avi Azulai Founder 

Mark Curtis Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch mark@flirtomatic.com 

Website www.flirtomatic.com 



139


140 

Livebookings 

Nominated by Balderton Capital 

Management 

Livebookings is Europe’s largest online marketing and reservations service for 

the restaurant industry. 

Livebookings enables people to make online reservations on restaurant websites 

and helps restaurants to access customers who would otherwise be difficult 

to reach through a global network of partners including Time Out, qype, 

lastminute.com, Salir.com, Ticketmaster and Eniro.se. 

The Ivy, The Ritz, Gordon Ramsay Holdings, Tantris, East, Grill and La Vaca 

Argentina are among Livebookings’ 20,000 restaurant clients. 

Headquartered in London, with offices in Hamburg, Stockholm and Madrid and 

customers based throughout 19 countries. In 2008 Livebookings took over 2.4 

million bookings to restaurants worldwide and the company is ranked as one of 

the top 30 fastest growing digital media companies in Europe. 

Key Management Christopher Persson Managing Director 

Get in Touch Renette Youssef renette.youssef@livebookings.net 

Website www.livebookings.net 


LOVEFiLM 

Nominated by DFJ Esprit 

Balderton Capital Management 

LOVEFiLM is Europe’s leading online DVD rental subscription service with one 

million members and operates in the uK, Germany, Sweden, norway and 

Denmark. In just over five years, LOVEFiLM has grown to become the uK’s third 

largest home entertainment subscription service. 

Growth within the company has been fast, helped by innovation, as well as 

acquisitions. Since launching, LOVEFiLM has been through 11 mergers and 

acquisitions across Europe, demonstrating each time skill in picking the right 

market and the right opportunity. As an entrepreneurial business, the company 

is pro-active and quick to act. 

Key Management Simon Calver Chief Executive Officer 

Simon Morris Chief Financial Officer 

Get in Touch Press Office pr@lovefilm.com 

Website www.lovefilm.com 



141


142 

Notonthehighstreet.com 


notonthehighstreet.com is an online marketplace that helps small businesses, 

whose products are not usually stocked by big retailers, reach a far wider 

audience than they would usually encounter. 

notonthehighstreet.com was established in 2006 by two former small business 

owners to fill a gap in the internet shopping market. The founders wanted to 

create an umbrella website for small businesses to sell their quality, creative 

products to consumers who are searching to buy something more creative, 

original or personalised than usual high-street wares. 

The website allows customers to browse products from around 900 small 

businesses, add those they wish to buy to one shopping basket and pay for 

these purchases in one simple transaction. Each seller then gets in touch 

with customers to confirm dispatch and delivery. The process is simple for 

customers and ensures global exposure for small businesses traditionally 

restricted by geography. 

Key Management Sophie Cornish Managing Director 

Holly Tucker Managing Director 

Get in Touch Emma Wood press@notonthehighstreet.com 

Website www.notonthehighstreet.com 


Seatwave 

Nominated by Fidelity Ventures 

Seatwave allows customers to buy or sell tickets over an online exchange. 

Tickets can be sold at any price selected by the seller, including below and 

above the face value printed on the ticket. Seatwave charges buyers a 15% 

service charge and sellers a 10% success fee (although it doesn’t charge listing 

fee) which, enables them to provide a dedicated customer service team and 

consumer protection guarantees. 

The company offers two consumer protection guarantees. TicketIntegrity 

guarantees that all tickets come from legitimate sources only. Seatwave’s 

TicketCover insurance, a joint venture with Mondial Insurance, refunds the 

full cost of tickets purchased on the site (including postage and packing) if an 

event is cancelled or if the ticket holder is unable to make it to the venue for a 

variety of reasons including motor breakdown, injury or jury service. 

In the past year the company has grown significantly and solidified a leading 

position in the online secondary ticketing market in the uK and across Europe. 

Key Management Joe Cohen Chief Executive Officer 

Richard Hurd-Wood Chief Operating Officer & 

UK Manager 

Get in Touch Taryn Walker taryn.walker@seatwave.com 

Website www.seatwave.com 



143


144 

Skyscanner 


Formed in 2001 by three software engineers who liked to travel, Skyscanner is a 

flight search engine company based in Edinburgh, with a second development 

centre in Poland. The management’s ambition is to have every airline, route, and 

seat price available on their web site to make planning and booking travel easier. 

Skyscanner’s flight search engine allows users to browse for flights via price and 

location. The product’s additional tools, including fare graphs, allow users to 

compare flight prices of any given route over a month period, or the price of 

weekend flights from any given city. 

Since raising venture capital the company has expanded significantly with 

approximately 7m customers using the website and referring over £20m of 

ticket sales each month. The company is now in the top 10 of all travel related 

websites in the uK and is the largest travel search site used in all countries across 

Europe. 

The company has won numerous web awards. It is growing strongly and 

profitably and is rapidly becoming a significant European internet business. 

Key Management Gareth William Co-founder & Chief Executive Officer 

Barry Smith Co-founder & 

Director of Business Development 

Get in Touch Lara Bayley lara@skyscanner.net 

Website www.skyscanner.net 


Slurp 


Management 

Slurp is an online wine retailer, initially backed by Aspiration Capital in 2006. 

The company has a product database of 2,000 wines and a rapidly growing 

following of customers. 

Slurp has one of the most comprehensive ranges of wines available online, 

from all over the world. Slurp is not a ‘virtual’ wine merchant like the rest of the 

market; the wine is warehoused in a facility in Oxfordshire. The company also 

works with wholesalers to bring their customers wines that are often not easy 

to find online. 

Key Management Paul Mitchell Co-founder 

Nico Sunnocks Co-founder 

Get in Touch nico@slurp.co.uk 

Website www.slurp.co.uk 



145


146 

Wonga 

Nominated by Balderton Capital Management 

Dawn Capital 

Wonga is an online lender and one of the uK’s most innovative credit 

businesses. The company is different from other online lenders because its 

risk and decision engine means the application and approval process takes just 

minutes to complete. 

Wonga is a flexible short-term lender, allowing applicants to choose exactly how 

much cash they want to borrow and for how many days they need it. Wonga 

customers needn’t borrow a fixed sum they might not require or pay interest 

for any longer than necessary. Wonga offers short term loans of between five 

days and a month and makes a profit when customers repay, not by continually 

extending a growing line of credit. 

The company, based in London, launched its first website in October 2007. 

Key Management Errol Damelin Chief Executive Officer 

Get in Touch errol.damelin@wonga.com 

Website www.wonga.com 




147

cOmpAny 

InDEx 




SERvIcES 

cOmpuTER 


& TElEcOmS 


& SERvIcES 


& mInIng 



REcREATIOn 

& lEISuRE 


BuSInESSES

Company Index 

A 

ACAL Energy Limited 9 

Active Health Partners 25 

Active Hotels 135 

AdaptiveMobile 49 

Agri.capital 10 

Antix Labs Ltd. 50 

ApaTech 107 

Aria Networks 26 

Arieso 51 

ARKeX 99 

Astex Therapeutics 108 

Audium Semi 52 

B 

BioVex 108 

Blackbay Ltd 53 

Bloxx Ltd 54 

BrightSale 136 

Buy.at 27 


COMPAny InDEX 

151

COMPAny InDEX 

152 

C 

Cambridge Broadband Networks 56 

CamSemi 55 

Cascade Technologies Ltd 11 

Cellnovo Limited 110 

Cellzome 111 

Chemrec 12 

City Screen Cinemas 125 

Clash Media 28 

Clearpace 57 

Cognitive Match 58 

Consilium Technologies Ltd. 59 

Controlled Power Technologies 13 

CyDen 81 

D 

Daysoft ® 82 

Destiny Pharma 112 

Durham Mag-Lev Ltd 29 

E 

Edenbrook Ltd 30 

Elateral 31 

EpiStem Holdings Plc. 113 

Espresso Group Limited 137 


E-Stack 14 

Ethicalsuperstore.com 138 

Exosect 15 

F 

Fizzback Group 32 

Flirtomatic 139 

Forth Dimension Displays 60 

Freerunner 61 

G 

Gambling Compliance 33 

Garlik 62 

Gigle Semiconductor 63 

Glysure 83 

H 

Hubdub 126 

Healthcare Learning Company Ltd 84 

Helveta 16 

I 

iiPAY 34 

Icera 64 

i-nexus 65 


COMPAny InDEX 

153

COMPAny InDEX 

154 

ip.access 66 

L 

Lagan 35 

Leon Restaurants 127 

Livebookings 140 

LOVEFiLM 142 

M 

Maxymiser 36 

MBA Polymers 100 

Medtrade Products Ltd 85 

Mergermarket Limited 37 

Metaforic 67 

Metalysis 101 

Midland Industrial Glass 102 

Mind Candy 128 

Mirada Medical 86 

MirriAd 38 

Monica Healthcare 87 

N 

Nanosight 88 

Neoss 89 

New Earth Solutions 17 


Nomad 68 

Nomad Payments Limited 39 

Notonthehighstreet.com 142 

Novel Polymers 103 

Nujira 69 

O - P 

Oxford BioTherapeutics 114 

Oxitec Limited 115 

picoChip 70 

Plant Impact 18 

PlasticLogic 71 

The Practice 90 

Prosurgics 91 

Provexis 92 

Q - R 

Quick.tv 129 

Renovo 117 

R5pharmaceuticals Ltd 116 

S 

SalesPush 40 

Seatwave 143 

Secerno 72 


COMPAny InDEX 

155

COMPAny InDEX 

156 

Sirigen 93 

Skyscanner 144 

Slurp 145 

Small World Financial Services 41 

Stanmore Implants Worldwide 94 

Sterecycle 19 

Steritrox 118 

STX Services 42 

Syntaxin Ltd 119 

T - V 

TestPlant 73 

Thomsons Online Benefits 43 

Tinglobal 74 

Vantia Therapeutics 120 

vc-net 44 

Vertical Wind Energy 20 

VirtenSys 45 

W - Z 

The Weybridge Club Ltd 130 

Wonga 146 

XMOS 75 

Yuuguu Limited 76 

Zeus 77 



cOmpAny InDEx 

157


1st floor north, Brettenham house, 

lancaster place, london, wc2E 7En 

T: 020 7420 1800 

f: 020 7420 1801 

E: bvca@bvca.co.uk 

bvca.co.uk

Britain's - BVCA admin

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?