Cambridge deals and the angel funders behind them look set to be in seventh heaven when the honours are handed out at an upcoming awards jamboree.
The leading science & technology cluster has a strong contingent of finalists at the UK Business Angels Association Investment Awards in London on July 2.So many Cambridge deals have taken wing in the last 12 months, underlining how important angel funding is to help emerging businesses scale.
Cambridge serial entrepreneur and funder Sunil Shah is a finalist for the Angel Investor of the Year which recognises the most active and impactful angel investor in backing startup and early stage UK businesses during the past 12 months and who has brought not only vital risk capital, but also significant added value to support the growth and success of their portfolio.
Struan McDougall’s Cambridge Capital Group is up for Best Investment in Disruptive Tech sponsored by Innovate UK. This award recognises investment in an early stage, innovative high growth potential business that is harnessing the power of technology to bring a revolutionary and disruptive solution to a major market, industry or social challenge. CCG is also a finalist for its investment in Light Point Medical.
Cambridge businesses IQ Capital, Martlet, Amadeus Capital Partners and Cambridge Capital Group are finalists for the Best Investment in Deep Tech accolade.
This award recognises investment in an early stage entrepreneur that has embraced the power of deep technologies such as AI, machine learning, IOT or robotics to converge with key sectors and industries to achieve fundamental breakthroughs to key social or global challenges or needs.
24 Haymarket and Ahren Innovation Capital – the latter formed by ‘Cambridge dontrepreneurs’– are strongly fancied in the Co-investment Deal of the Year category for their investment in Mogrify. The Cambridge startup is poised to transform the development of life saving cell therapies via the licence of proprietary cell conversions tailored to any therapeutic application.
IQ Capital is in the running for Exit of the Year while Cambridge Angels, led by Peter Cowley, could take the prize for the most active and impactful angel syndicate or group in the UK.
The UK Business Angels Association, which has a base at The Bradfield Centre on Cambridge Science Park, is the national trade association for angel and early-stage investment, representing over 160 member organisations and around 18,000 investors.
Business angels in the UK collectively invest an estimated £1.5 billion per annum and are therefore the UK’s largest source of investment for startups and early-stage businesses seeking to grow.
For a full list of finalists visit https://awards.ukbaa.org.uk/the-2019-award-categories/finalists/
