Business Weekly newspaper

In today's entrepreneurial landscape, where innovation and diversity are celebrated as catalysts for economic growth, the Women-Led High Growth Enterprise Taskforce Report serves as a beacon, illuminating the path toward a more inclusive and equitable future for women in the workplace and female entrepreneurs alike. As founder of The Rising Network, Lily Cheng stands at the forefront of this transformative movement, leading the charge alongside industry leaders to dismantle barriers and unlock the full potential of women in various professional domains. In this article, Lily looks at the key findings from the report and previews the forthcoming Rising Festival 2024 in Cambridge – https://lnkd.in/eugdHH8C

Cambridge-based cyber security AI innovator Darktrace is being sold to Thoma Bravo in the US for £5.315 billion. A deal was mooted last year but Darktrace directors felt it significantly undervalued the business. https://lnkd.in/eBB7DfG7 The acquisition is currently expected to complete during the third or fourth quarter of 2024. The parties have agreed that Darktrace retains its research and development capabilities in the UK and the Netherlands and that there will be no material restructurings or changes to Darktrace's Cambridge UK headquarters or other business operations. Darktrace says it will continue to create high skilled jobs in the UK and invest in building world-class cyber AI capabilities to improve UK resilience. Being able to draw on Thoma Bravo's resources and expertise will support Darktrace's continued growth globally, resulting in further opportunities for its people, the company added. This is the second $5bn-plus acquisition of a Cambridge company by a US buyer in recent months. Danaher bought life science research tools supplier Abcam at the back end of last year and has pledged to continue to grow the business from Cambridge. The Darktrace deal represents yet another of the Cluster’s Crown Jewels that have fallen into foreign ownership. By mid-morning Darktrace’s UK share price was 606.05p – up 89.05p or 17.22 per cent. Darktrace chair Gordon Hurst, said: “The proposed offer represents an attractive premium and an opportunity for shareholders to receive the certainty of a cash consideration at a fair value for their shares. “The proposed acquisition will provide Darktrace access to a strong financial partner in Thoma Bravo, with deep software sector expertise, who can enhance the company's position as a best-in-class cyber AI business headquartered in the UK.” CEO Poppy Gustafsson added: "I am immensely proud of our brilliant business and people. From our base in Cambridge, we are building a world-leading company using a unique form of artificial intelligence to address the societal challenge of cybersecurity. “This proposed offer represents the next stage in our growth journey and I am excited by the many opportunities we have ahead of us. Our technology has never been more relevant in a world increasingly threatened by AI-powered cyberattacks. In the face of this, we are expanding our product portfolio, entering new markets, and focused on delivering for our customers, partners and colleagues.” And Andrew Almeida, Partner of Thoma Bravo, commented: "Darktrace is at the very cutting edge of cybersecurity technology, and we have long been admirers of its platform and capability in artificial intelligence. “Thoma Bravo has been investing exclusively in software for over 20 years and we will bring to bear the full range of our platform, operational expertise and deep experience of cybersecurity in supporting Darktrace's growth."

Boston US life science company Cerevance, which has facilities at Cambridge Science Park, has taken its Series B-1 round to a stunning $98 million after securing a $47m extension. https://lnkd.in/ezZE83FU Proceeds will support an upcoming Phase 3 clinical trial for CVN424, a first-in-class non-dopamine therapy for patients with Parkinson’s disease, plus the advancement of a pipeline of novel treatments for other CNS disorders. These include Alzheimer’s disease, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal dementia. The latest financing has been led by Agent Capital, Bioluminescence Ventures, and Double Point Ventures, with participation from new investors MQB Partners and LifeRock Ventures and existing backers Gates Frontier, GV (Google Ventures) and Lightstone Ventures. Campbell Murray, Partner at Agent Capital, and Kouki Harasaki, PhD Harasaki – Founder and Managing Partner at Bioluminescence Ventures – have joined the Cerevance board. “The support from new and existing investors underscores the ongoing advancements made by Cerevance,” said Cerevance CEO Craig Thompson. “This upcoming year marks a crucial phase as we embark on the Phase 3 clinical trial for our flagship therapy, CVN424, and continue in discovering innovative, precision CNS treatments that will enrich our extensive pipeline.” Campbell Murray added: “There is a clear need for groundbreaking, innovative therapies for Parkinson's disease. We are confident that Cerevance's lead program, CVN424, holds promise in delivering significant benefits to individuals. “We look forward to working with this talented management team and distinguished board of directors to further advance the development of new therapies for patients with CNS disorders." he company’s NETSseq (Nuclear Enriched Transcript Sort sequencing) platform is a powerful tool that pinpoints uniquely expressed, novel target proteins, which may be exclusive to particular brain circuits or exhibit altered expression levels in diseased brains.   Cerevance has tackled one of the most significant hurdles in CNS drug discovery – the identification of novel, highly specific targets – and devised a clinically proven approach for target discovery and subsequent drug development.

Cambridge technology company Checkit plc increased revenue and cut losses in the year to January 31 and CEO Kit Kyte has a return to profit in his sights. https://lnkd.in/dM6aKcZs Checkit is an augmented workflow and smart sensor automation company for frontline workers and reports continued momentum in line with board expectations. Total group revenue from continuing operations was up 17 per cent to £12 million and the company produced a 23 per cent reduction in cash burn – from £15.6m to £9m in the year. It reported “progress towards profitability with a 46 per cent improvement in adjusted LBITDA from continuing operations of £3.4m compared to a £6.4m in FY23. That was driven by revenue growth of 17 per cent, an increase in gross margins from 63 per cent to 67 per cent and an 11 per cent cut in operating costs. Kyte said: “Checkit has successfully reduced its financial losses by 46 per cent this fiscal year while continuing to escalate our growth through strategic 'land and expand' opportunities. “We are on track to become cashflow breakeven and anticipate posting a positive EBITDA performance in FY27. The launch of our new product Asset Intelligence marks an exciting chapter in the evolution of our offering and demonstrates the synergies in the Checkit product ecosystem as data collected from IoT sensors acts as a catalyst for future software growth. “We continue to focus on our twin goals of expedited profitability whilst driving top-line growth in the business and look forward to FY25 with confidence.” Chair Keith Daley 🌈 said the trading improvement defied general economic uncertainty and said that having transitioned to an exclusively subscription-based model, the goal was now to enhance revenue growth in the company’s key markets of Western Europe and North America.

Rescuing a set of French doors that had been dumped in a skip led to a war on waste and the founding of a business now turning over around £2 million and employing 30 people. Joseph Holman, CEO and founder of upcycling company Green Doors in Luton, says his enterprise should inspire future generations. https://lnkd.in/dZVD-XQ3 Last year alone his business saved over 3,000 items destined for landfill and currently has thousands of doors and windows for sale in its 50,000 square foot warehouse. Holman says he is on a mission to provide every door with a second life and to stop uPVC going to landfill. Holman began in business early. Aged just 12 and using his dad’s eBay account, he invested his birthday and pocket money into a bulk order of magnetic ‘stick and ball’ games, which he then sold on individually. “I ended up netting a profit of around £2,000 in just six weeks and from then on I was hooked on buying and selling anything I could.” Diagnosed with ADHD and dyslexia at the age of seven, Holman struggled at school. He decided to try his hand at plumbing. “I was on a £700 apprenticeship wage but making £3,000 to £4,000 a month selling second-hand boiler parts from jobs on eBay,” he says. It was while working as a plumber in 2014 that Holman was inspired to set up Green Doors. “Walking past a skip, I noticed a set of modern, white uPVC French doors. I dug them out, loaded them onto my mate's plumbing van, cleaned them up and advertised them on eBay. They sold the next day for hundreds of pounds.” Holman spent days scouring skips for more doors but soon found a “mountain destined for landfill” outside a door and window company. He bought the lot from the owner. With this stock secured, Holman pulled the plug on his plumbing career and founded his company with a plan to disrupt a wasteful industry. Holman says: “So far, we have not had any investment and have grown by reinvesting our profits back into the business. It’s a big issue we are fighting, with about one third of waste globally coming from the construction industry. “More than 10 billion doors are produced every year. Some don’t even make it out of the factory as they’ve been made to slightly the wrong specification. Although a small amount of these are recycled, nothing is better than reusing. A lot of these doors are replacements but their lives are cut short due to aesthetics. That's where we come in.”

AstraZeneca’s share price rose almost 600p to 11,948p on early trading this morning after posting strong Q1 figures as market cap hit £183.74 billion. https://lnkd.in/epBca6AT And CEO Pascal Soriot said the strong start to 2024 was only the beginning as the company continued to broaden its pipeline and steered through several other critical trials throughout the year. The figures are rocketing in oncology worldwide but AstraZeneca’s sustainable strength is clearly in the breadth and spread of its influence across several sectors, including the rapidly growing rare disease sector. Total Q1 revenue was 19 per cent ahead to $12,679 million – driven by an 18 per cent increase in product sales and continued growth in alliance revenue from partnered medicines. AstraZeneca notched double digit growth in total revenue in Oncology at 26 per cent, CVRM (23 per cent), R&I (17 per cent) and Rare Disease (16 per cent). Soriot said: “Our strong pipeline momentum continued and already this year we announced positive trial results for Imfinzi and Tagrisso that were unprecedented in lung cancer. The data from both of these studies will be presented during the ASCO plenary in June. We are also looking forward to seeing the results of several other important trials throughout the year. “At our Annual General Meeting we were pleased to announce a seven per cent increase in the annual dividend and at our Investor Day on May 21 we will outline the evolution of our company – underscoring our confidence in sustaining industry-leading growth.” Total full-year revenue is tipped to increase by a low double digit to low teens percentage and collaboration revenue is expected to rise substantially, driven by success-based milestones and certain anticipated transactions.

An entrepreneur, who was forced to establish her HealthTech company in the US eight years ago as a result of insufficient lab space in the UK, is setting up in Cambridge to help more early-stage biotechnology companies get started this side of the Atlantic. https://lnkd.in/e8R76T-g Laura Grimwood, who is founder and CEO of Co-Laboratories, has already created similar space in the Camden area of London. In partnership with journey, a real estate company focused on innovation facilitation and with a particular focus on early-stage companies, Co-Labs is opening a new incubator at the NIAB base on Lawrence Weaver Road, Cambridge. Co-Labs is targeting Phase 1 opening in July-24. She says that in addition to the two direct jobs that Co-Labs plans to create, the hub will be a catalyst for further growth. The companies within the space will hire between 60 and 80 people through the two phases of the project. Laura said: “Essentially I had to move my startup to the USA in 2015 because we couldn’t find any lab space in Cambridge or London. Eventually I started Co-Laboratories to provide space for startups and provide support as they find their feet.” Co-Labs is a biotechnology incubator community dedicated to providing a much needed service to the entrepreneurial biotech ecosystem – to maximise the social and economic impact of their activities. Laura is committed to helping others avoid the same fate that befell her business all those years ago and enable them to remain “where the amazing talent and collaborations are.” The Growth Works Inward Investment service, trading externally as Locate Cambridge, was instrumental in securing the business in Cambridgeshire and provided significant support along the journey. Co-Labs applied to participate in the very first Life Science Market Access Programme that Growth Works’ Inward Investment service organised in August 2021. Rebecca Bekkenutte, Managing Director, Growth Works Inward Investment said: “Co-Labs imminent arrival in Cambridge is exciting news. It is fantastic that after two years of working with Co-Labs the business has finally found a space in Cambridge to help facilitate further growth for the biotech industry locally.”

Owlstone Medical, a global leader in Breath Biopsy® for applications in early disease detection and precision medicine, has secured $6.5 million funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. https://lnkd.in/e8Qn3wAh The Cambridge Science Park company has clinched a $5m equity investment to advance its Breath Biopsy platform and $1.5m in grant funding to develop breath-based diagnostics and identify breath biomarkers for tuberculosis and HIV. With support from the Foundation, Owlstone Medical is interested in developing new cost-effective detection technologies for volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that could serve as markers of diseases that disproportionately affect the developing world. With the new funding, Owlstone seeks to understand whether this approach is suitable for TB and HIV detection and to explore a path by which breath-based testing could be deployed for rapid screening and earlier diagnosis. Billy Boyle, co-founder and CEO at Owlstone Medical, said: “Early diagnosis is a critical determinant of health outcomes. By enabling swift and non-invasive detection of disease, breath analysis has the potential to save lives and dramatically reduce the burden of illness in resource-constrained settings. “This investment by the Gates Foundation is testament to how Owlstone is uniquely positioned to transform infectious disease diagnosis through our Breath Biopsy platform. “The funds will accelerate both the discovery and validation of VOC biomarkers, and the development of a fieldable, low cost, simple to use device.” The $5m equity investment will support advancements of the Breath Biopsy platform, including expansion of the Breath Biopsy VOC Atlas1 database and for development of a remote-use real-time breath analyser. This component of the funding will be the first time that the foundation has taken an equity position in a breath diagnostics company. The $1.5m grant funding will support the identification of breath biomarkers across two projects:- • TB: In partnership with the University of Cape Town, Owlstone aims to identify a panel of on-breath candidate VOC biomarkers that differentiate TB subjects from healthy controls and to develop breath diagnostic approaches based on exploiting the metabolic features of TB using in vitro approaches. • HIV: Working with investigators from Imperial College London and the University of Oxford, Owlstone will analyse VOCs from blood samples from subjects with HIV and work to identify a panel of on-breath candidate VOC biomarkers that correlate with HIV viral load. In both areas, the data collected will also be used to further populate Owlstone’s Breath Biopsy VOC Atlas.

Experienced biopharma executive Meenu Chhabra Karson has been appointed Chair of the Board at Cambridge-based Harness Therapeutics. https://lnkd.in/eCRhE8Xg Harness, headquartered on the Babraham Research Campus, is focused on protein upregulation to develop next generation therapeutics for neurodegenerative diseases. The company (formerly named Transine Therapeutics) raised an extra £4 million growth capital from existing investors last November to take its funding haul to £17.6m. Ms Chhabra Karson brings over 20 years of experience in the global biopharmaceutical industry spanning leadership roles in both private and public large pharmaceutical as well as small biotech companies. Her track record includes raising more than $500m in private and public capital, driving strategic transactions and delivering partnerships worth over $2 billion, meeting and accelerating value-generating milestones, as well as developing high-performing organisations. Jan Thirkettle, CEO of Harness said: “I am delighted to welcome Meenu as our new Board Chair. Her strategic leadership, company building, and wide business development expertise, will enhance our efforts to open up the target space for neurodegenerative diseases. “Meenu joins the company at an important time as we advance our lead Huntington’s disease programme towards the clinic and seek to broaden our portfolio based on the platform we have established over the past three years.” Ms Chhabra Karson added: “With a unique approach to controlled upregulation of CNS targets we have the potential to transform the treatment of not only Huntington’s disease but potentially a broad array of neurodegenerative diseases for the benefit of patients worldwide.” Harness is backed by leading life science investors Takeda Ventures, Inc., The Dementia Discovery Fund (DDF) and Epidarex Capital.

PEM Corporate Finance (PEMCF) has reported a record-breaking financial year. Despite the turbulent economic landscape and fall of M & A activity across the UK, PEMCF worked on over £350 million worth of projects during the 12 months to March 2024, advising over 40 clients on company transactions, financial due diligence reports, valuations, capital fundraisings and strategic reviews. https://lnkd.in/e9ATAtAY Between April 2023 and March 2024, PEM Corporate Finance LLP’s deal volume triggered an increase in fee income of 30 per cent on the previous financial year. The Cambridge-based team advised clients from a range of sectors including specialist engineering, manufacturing, facilities management, IT services, life sciences and professional services. Deals include the sale of Papworth-based specialist manufacturer Supply Plus Limited to Swedish consolidator Lagercrantz Group AB; the acquisition of SaaS provider DisplayNote Technologies Ltd by Constellation Group’s subsidiary Kinetic; the sale of St Ives-based specialist engineering business Orbital Fabrications to Swedish industrials group Bergman & Beving; the MBO of supply chain consulting firm Prestige Purchasing; the sale of Cambridge-based HVAC specialist Adcock Refrigeration and Air Conditioning to national construction group Bowmer and Kirkland Ltd; and the sale of legal specialists Shoreside Law to Davies. Investment for the future has followed PEMCF’s strong performance, with the promotions of James William Lewin and Cameron Rothwell to manager and assistant manager, respectively, as well as the recruitment of Ellie Rochira as analyst. The team has also welcomed the addition of Joshua A., a qualified ACA and CFA level one holder, who has joined from KPMG. Partner and head of PEMCF Philip Olagunju MBA said: “Our record-breaking year is a testament to the dedication, hard work, expertise and excellence of our team and our recent appointments reflect our commitment to further nurturing talent and fostering a culture of growth. “Despite the economic challenges of the past year, our performance underpins our strong positioning in our chosen markets. We remain committed to delivering exceptional results for our clients and have continued to build a strong pipeline of projects for the rest of 2024 and beyond.” The PEMCF team is looking forward to this coming financial year as it celebrates its 20th year of trading as an autonomous division of PEM.