Lolly for lollies: London based ice lolly company launches crowdfunding campaign to raise £225,000

 LICKALIX aims to disrupt the UK frozen treats market with its handmade, natural and healthy ice lollies

London based LICKALIX has launched a crowdfunding campaign on Crowdcube (http://www.crowdcube.com/investment/lickalix-16721) to help it raise £225,000 towards the national expansion of its gourmet ice lolly business. Set up in May 2014 by Karis and Dominic Gesua, LICKALIX spotted a gap in the market for natural and healthy ice lollies and successfully launched a range of products over the summer. In the first week of its crowdfunding campaign, the company attracted more than 50 investors and achieved 15% of its target.

"The ice cream, frozen yogurt and frozen treats market in the UK is worth more than £1.1 billion but there are limited healthy options available," explains Dominic. "With consumers increasingly looking for food products that are lower in sugar and fat and free from additives but that still taste delicious, ice lollies need to move with the times. We've already seen how frozen yogurt has taken off as a healthier alternative to ice cream...why not ice lollies too?"

Hiring Hib completes £425,000 fundraise with VentureFounders

Award-winning online recruitment marketplace secures new investment through equity crowdfunding platform.

Hiring Hub has just completed a growth capital fundraise of £425,000 in under six weeks with VentureFounders, the new UK-based equity crowdfunding platform. 

Founded in 2010 by Sara Jones and Simon Swan, Hiring Hub connects employers to an approved network of specialist recruitment agencies that will compete to fill a company's vacancy for a fixed fee that the employer sets, thereby making recruitment easier and more transparent. This innovative business model gained significant traction over the past few years with 750 registered recruitment agencies and over 400 employers.  This year, the company sought new investment to embark on its next phase of growth and chose VentureFounders to support them.

UK FinTech Firm Fireflock.com Launches Premium Crowdfunding Platform

Yesterday Fireflock.com, one of the UK's premier FinTech firms, launched a premium crowdfunding platform designed to match high net worth and sophisticated investors with start-up, early stage and developed companies looking to raise capital.

Founded by seasoned investment professional Callum Campbell, Fireflock's primary objective is to establish itself as a leading source of growth capital within the UK. Fireflock's unique focus on quality, professionalism and diversity will appeal to both traditional investors and companies fuelling the next generation of British enterprise.

The newly launched web platform acts as a 60-day online "roadshow" for promising young companies to sell their vision and secure much-needed capital, giving investors access to a wealth of critical information such as detailed business plans, financial projections, director profiles as well as interactive discussion forums.

Fireflock places great importance on attracting ambitious growth companies with the building blocks necessary for success; a scalable concept, an investible management team and defensible valuation. The platform has already developed a pipeline of exciting opportunities including mobile to physical innovator Bypost.com,  online health and fitness service Life Changing Choices, popular dating app BootyShake, local community portal Leading Locally, beverage company Thor Drinks and entertainment company Movie Zone.

Seedrs Acquires Junction Investments and Will Expand to the United States

Seedrs has acquired California-based Junction Investments.

We plan to use this acquisition to expand to the United States in early 2015. Junction's co-founders, Adam Kaufman and Brian Goldsmith, are now Co-Heads of Seedrs America, and they will be leading this expansion.

The Seedrs and Junction teams are very excited about the opportunities that our combination creates, and I wanted to share some background to the transaction and an overview of next steps.

A Global Platform

A founding principle of Seedrs is that investment in startups and growth businesses should be global. We believe in a future where entrepreneurs and investors from all over the world can connect online. Investors should be able to discover and invest in opportunities anywhere, and entrepreneurs should be able to access capital worldwide.

Financial regulation remains largely national or regional, however, and compliance with applicable law has always been a non-negotiable element of Seedrs's approach to business. Building a global platform is thus a multi-stage process that involves identifying the right approaches and partners in different jurisdictions.