Angel CoFund makes 50th investment

 The Government-backed fund invests in OwnFone, as the personalised phone business raises £786,000

The Angel CoFund, backed by the Government to provide support for high-growth businesses in the UK, has today announced a £250,000 investment into OwnFone, bringing the personalised phone company's funding round to £786,000. Today's announcement, which is the Angel CoFund's 50th investment, sees the fund co-invest with the London Business Angels, Renaissance Capital Partners and mobile expert Nigel Litchfield, who also joins the OwnFone Board.

Launched in November 2011, the Angel CoFund invests alongside syndicates of business angels, and has already invested over £22m alongside more than £90m from business angels and other investors, making it the most active early stage fund in the country. OwnFone is the 50th business to be backed by the CoFund, which has supported a diverse range of companies around the country

TV vet raises £150,000 from Cheltenham investors for new pet show app

Which dog has the waggiest tail in Cheltenham? Which is the cutest kitten in Gloucestershire? The answers to these questions and many more will soon be answered by a brand new smartphone app called Qtsy (www.qtsy.com).

The app will capture the fun and excitement of local pet shows, allowing owners around the world to enter pictures and videos of their pets into virtual shows, judge each other's entries and win prizes.

Qtsy is the brainchild of local TV vet Joe Inglis (pictured left), and is being made possible by the backing of Cheltenham-based investor syndicate Angels4Angels who have joined a leading mobile technology investor in

the £150,000 seed fundraising round.

Purple WiFi raises $5 million investment for rapid international expansion

Investment funds will be used to accelerate product development and for staff recruitment to aid global expansion, targeting EMEA, APAC and the Americas

Purple WiFi, the UK-based WiFi social login and location analytics platform, today announced new funding to accelerate its rapid international expansion. The $5m funding was led by Sir Terry Leahy, Bill Currie, Iain MacDonald and Bob Willett from the William Currie Group with participation from Juno Capital a leading Angel Syndicate.

Purple WiFi allows users to gain free access to a public WiFi network through their existing social media accounts or a short form. The user gets access to family friendly WiFi, while the benefit to the business hosting the service (such as a restaurant, hotel, shop, museum, sports stadium or shopping mall) is that they are rewarded with valuable analytic insights into the profiles and movements of their customers and a sophisticated built-in marketing platform.

JewelStreet.com sparkles with cash from Envestors

JewelStreet, the surging jeweller marketplace set up to provide a fair deal for designers, has raised £465,000 to recruit more online customers and prepare for international rollout. The sum includes £350,000 of equity raised through Envestors Limited, the UK's leading private investor network.

Launched in September 2012, JewelStreet.com boasts 12,500 'live' products from more than 250 brands and designers thanks to its robust, open-source technology. Designers love the platform - they benefit from marketing, payment processing and secure messaging; plus 75% of the retail price instead of the usual 35%, so they can pass on discounts to shoppers.

A management team combining design creativity with marketing savvy and IT skill has grown the business with popular online 'events' and sales such as London Jewellery Week. Now the firm is targeting customers with its own jewellery sales and pop-up 'eShop' sites for vendors that are powered by its core technology.