Participated · Equity · Sep 2024

Simpler provides a unified, one-click buying experience and a Checkout as a Service (CaaS) that lets merchants outsource their entire checkout infrastructure. Its CaaS manages checkout flow, payments, shipping, and loyalty within a single, fully integrated payment suite. The platform removes the need for multiple, disjointed integrations, reducing technical complexity and aiming to boost conversion rates. Simpler raised €9 million from new and existing investors to accelerate expansion and product development. The funds will support growth into the UK, Italy, and Spain and drive platform enhancements. The company positions itself to serve businesses of all sizes, from independent retailers to large enterprises, by simplifying the transaction process. Simpler builds a headless checkout solution that decouples the checkout process from merchants and enables one-click purchases via a single "shopping passport." Customers can buy through traditional e-commerce sites or remotely via ads, emails, or QR codes without visiting a merchant’s store. The company positions this as a conversion driver for retailers; early network results show double-digit conversion increases and, in many cases, more than 70% of merchants' orders processed through Simpler. Simpler was founded in 2021, is headquartered in London with offices in Athens, and the team counts 11 people. CEO and co-founder Rania Lamprou says funds are being used to build a strong core team. The company is eyeing rapid expansion into the European market.

Participated · Seed · Jun 2023

Pixion Games builds multiplayer games with short-session, mobile-first design and is led by industry veterans from major studios. Its flagship title, Fableborne, is an isometric action-RPG that combines strategic base building, asynchronous PvP raids, PvE boss battles and on-chain, tradable in-game assets. The company is integrating a proprietary Pixion League tournament platform and LiveOps powered-by-tournaments model to drive engagement and monetization. Pixion emphasizes careful integration of on-chain elements, user-generated content, and social play without harming core gameplay. The studio encourages community involvement via playtests and active channels on Discord and Twitter to shape development. Founded in 2017, the team aims to accelerate Fableborne’s development with fresh funding and continued investor support. Pixion Games develops real-time, multiplayer mobile esports games aimed at providing accessible, bite-sized PVP sessions for casual and more core mobile players. The studio emphasizes short-session gameplay to capture a "lunchtime esports" audience and targets digital-native players seeking more complex yet approachable systems. Its team includes industry veterans from King, Konami, Curve, and Hutch Games, and the company is led by founder and CEO Kam Punia. Pixion plans to use recent funding to develop its game slate and scale the team. The company has previously received pre-seed and follow-on investments from former King executives Nir Efrat and Alan Fung, and is backed by ex-King directors and other investors.

Led · Equity · Feb 2023

Novel produces cinematic longform narrative podcasts and investigative journalism series for clients and networks. The company was founded in 2019 by Sean Glynn and is co-owned with Max O’Brien and Matt O’Mara. Novel has closed deals with networks including iHeartRadio, Wondery and Gimlet, and produces series for the BBC, The Financial Times, Google and The Premier League. It operates a 50-strong global team with offices in London and teams in New York and LA. The team includes industry veterans such as Executive Creative Director Julie Shapiro, Creative Director of Production Austin Mitchell, and Head of TV and Film Neil Krishnan. The company plans to use new funding to accelerate growth with strategic partners and to establish its own network of originals.

Participated · Seed · Mar 2022

RETìníZE develops Animotive, a VR SaaS product positioned to simplify and disrupt the 3D animation production pipeline by making animation intuitive. The company began as a division of Wild Rover Productions in 2015 and operated in stealth from 2019 while iterating the tech platform. Its team includes television producer Philip Morrow and his son Jack, who serves as CTO. RETìníZE has built immersive experiences for clients including the BBC, National Geographic, World Health Organization, Save the Children, BMW, Tourism NI, and Seagate. The company says the new funding will propel a two-year growth and global rollout programme. Financially, it has moved from a pre-seed investment into a £2 million seed round to support international expansion.

Led · Series B · Jun 2021

QiTan Technology develops nanopore-based gene-sequencing instruments and matching reagents and consumables. Its stated applications include non-invasive prenatal testing, IVF, liquid biopsy, newborn screening, research into genetic and rare diseases, and tumor subtyping. The company undertakes independent research and development, manufacturing, and application of its products. On December 28, 2023, QiTan completed a C+ round financing of nearly RMB 100 million. The reported investors in the round are Source Code Capital and Chengdu Bio-city Fund (Guosheng Capital). The article does not disclose operating metrics or further financial terms. QiTan Technology develops, manufactures and commercializes nanopore-based gene sequencing instruments (QNome platform) along with supporting chips and reagents. The company has built a production base in Chengdu’s Tianfu International Bio‑city with nearly ¥200M invested, capable of producing 2,000 sequencers per year and 1 million reagent/chip kits. QiTan reports over 100 institutional customers across research institutes, universities, hospitals, CDCs and other application areas, and employs more than 270 staff with 75% in R&D. It has focused on domestic supply‑chain localization (over 95% domesticized) and holds a patent portfolio of more than 200 IP results, including over 100 invention patents. Following 2021 product commercialization and 2022 market expansion, the company plans to continue完善 its product matrix and accelerate launch of mid- and high-throughput sequencing platforms and additional applications in 2023. The firm emphasizes multidisciplinary talent cultivation to support R&D and mass-production scalability and intends to deepen market expansion and commercial deployment. Qitan develops nanopore gene sequencers that enable applications such as immunotyping, real-time detection of pathogens, tumor genome analysis, and intestinal flora profiling. The company plans to commercialize its nanopore sequencing equipment this year, which would make it the first Chinese firm and only the second in the world to bring fourth-generation sequencing to market. Qitan expects its sequencers to be competitively priced at about CNY100,000 (USD15,630) each, with per-sequencing costs under CNY1,000 (USD156.30), enabling cost savings for small laboratories and research institutes handling limited samples. The firm has completed a Series B financing, providing capital to support its market launch and commercialization. The article situates Qitan within a large addressable market: global DNA sequencing is projected at USD17.6 billion this year and the Chinese market at CNY20.5 billion (USD3.2 billion). It also notes current market concentration, with Illumina holding roughly 80% and having sold USD276 million of sequencers in the first three quarters of last year.