Archangels leads investment of £6.2m in Scots early-stage firms during Q1
Edinburgh-based business angel investment syndicate Archangels – believed to be the largest organisation of its kind in the world – has led investment of £6.2 million in Scottish early-stage companies in the first quarter of 2020.
Four tech and life sciences businesses – Blackford Analysis, Fios Genomics, Optoscribe and Speech Graphics – were the recipients of the additional investment. A total of £2.6m came from Archangels members, with £1m from the Scottish Investment Bank, and the remaining £2.6m from a range of other investors. All four firms are existing Archangels portfolio members.
Joint MD Niki Mckenzie said: “Each of these businesses is a shining example of homegrown Scottish innovation that is succeeding on a worldwide stage. We are both proud and willing to offer our continued support to these businesses as they scale up.
“These are difficult and uncertain times for all of our portfolio companies, but we remain confident that businesses like these – led by change-makers and entrepreneurs – will play an important role in driving the Scottish economy forward when the time comes. Archangels remains committed to supporting Scottish businesses and I would encourage any early-stage companies in the technology and life sciences space to [speak to] us.”
Blackford Analysis is a provider of a single radiology artificial intelligence platform that allows healthcare providers to quickly access and manage medical image analysis applications and AI algorithms that add clinical value.
Fios Genomics provides bioinformatic and statistical data analysis services, Optoscribe is an innovator in optical communications, and Speech Graphics produces high-quality facial animation from audio alone.