Althea’s Post

The City of Danbury will soon join GoNetspeed’s high-speed, symmetrical internet through the company’s privately funded $7.6 million investment. https://bit.ly/3ZXj8DS

Good to join Felicity Hannah on the BBC's Wake Up to Money show this morning to discuss some of the top stories this week, alongside Jane Foley of Rabobank and Steve Nolan from Liverpool John Moores University.   Top of the list was the NHS England. The PM Keir Starmer is right to ask the hard questions facing our country’s most valued service, and we must look across our economy to find innovative solutions that can protect it for the long-term. As I mentioned on the programme, one of these solutions is to get capital into the right companies that can make a difference.   At Future Planet Capital, 40% of our UK investments are in life sciences companies, such as Arctoris, Navenio , Strolll and Ultromics. I’ve seen first-hand the revolutionary capabilities we have in this space, and I’m sure the implementation of their respective technologies would help to create an NHS fit for the future.   This got us onto the success coming out of the US tech space. It’s important to remember that the UK has all the ingredients it needs to follow suit. But we need to invest more in long-term, high-growth solutions like our university spinouts and scaleups – we already manage the Government’s excellent deep-tech fund UK Innovation & Science Seed Fund with a special portfolio from the UK Space Agency. And, with our plans to launch a new British Co-Investment Fund (BCF), we’ll be able to offer further scale-up support.   We also talked about OpenAI’s latest valuation. Through our friend and partner, Patrick S. Chung, we were able to see #SamAltman in May at Harvard University as he wowed the faculty. Would we see the same at our top universities? This news is great to hear and highlights the US’ recognition of AI’s value as both an investment and solution. It’s time for the UK to do the same – to foster the potential of businesses like Darktrace and Google DeepMind, and drive positive impact in economic and societal terms.   There’s too much to include in one post, but you can find the recording here: https://lnkd.in/eEfGMVdD

Fiber-Fed Broadband is Boosting Rural Economies! A study conducted by the Center on Rural Innovation (CORI) reveals the significant impact of fiber broadband on the economic development of rural communities. The research presents compelling evidence that fiber-fed broadband, supplied by local providers, significantly boosts income, entrepreneurship, and business investment. The analysis focuses on three types of rural communities: 1. Underserved Communities 2. Communities with basic broadband services 3. Communities served by smaller fiber broadband providers Don’t miss the discussion on this report in the insightful Fiber for Breakfast podcast featuring Gary Bolton, President and CEO of Fiber Broadband! Be sure to check it out along with his other podcasts for more valuable insights!➡️https://lnkd.in/dcXD2Rdy

Featured in the Infrastructure Investor article ‘Inside co-investment's relentless rise’, Cube's Chairman and CEO, Renaud de Matharel, discusses how co-investment strategies are reshaping the investment landscape by offering GPs and LPs growth and collaboration opportunities amid a slowdown in fundraising. For a deeper dive into this emerging trend, and how co-investments enable GPs to access deals that might otherwise be off limits without additional funding, such as Cube’s acquisition of Verdis A/S - Denmark with three co-investors, read the full article: https://lnkd.in/e_arnh9K

Discover Daniel Sawko's journey in founding shipshape.vc, an innovative investment search engine, and learn about the advantages of starting a business in Wales. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 Explore the commonalities in the VC landscape across the Celtic nations and the importance of Daniel's participation in the Interceltic Business Forum. LEARN MORE 👇 https://lnkd.in/eDUkKnAR

🌐 We've advised Arjun Infrastructure Partners on its acquisition, in consortium with Macquarie Capital Partners and abrdn of a #FTTH network from DIGI which currently comprises 4,250,000 building units across 12 provinces in Spain. The remainder of the network – up to 1,750,000 building units – will be deployed over an estimated period of three years. The transaction is subject to customary conditions. The network will be operated by Onivia, #Spain's largest independent wholesale fibre platform and in which Arjun Infrastructure Partners is also a significant investor alongside Macquarie Capital and Aberdeen. We also advised Arjun Infrastructure Partners on its prior investment in Onivia. Our team: Samir Azzouzi Maanan, Pablo Hernández, Patricia Puertas Díaz and Jose Antonio Jordana de Pozas Poole. Read more: https://okt.to/8sxEud #Infrastructure #Telecoms #TMT

It's always thrilling when one of our team is featured in a high-profile paper. "ELTIF 2.0 offers retail investors access to unlisted asset classes, including private equity, private debt, and infrastructure, which have historically only been available to institutional investors." Karim Boussetta, Moonfare's Regional Head for France and the BeNeLux region, shares his expert insights in PitchBook’s recent white paper, 'Private Capital Breakdown 2024.' This France-focused report offers a comprehensive industry overview, with Karim's insights about the EU Commission’s updated ELTIF framework appearing on page 18. You can read his thoughts about how ELTIF 2.0 is empowering individual investors to harness the performance and diversification benefits of private markets. #PrivateMarkets #PrivateCapital #MarketingCommunication #ELTIF

Did you know NYC Accelerator has helped over 20,000 buildings with energy upgrades across all five boroughs? Watch to learn more about our programs and services, and contact NYC Accelerator to reduce emissions in your building: https://lnkd.in/eYKW8yEf

🌱 Building and Scaling Climate Hardware: My Insights on the Recently Published Playbook 🚀 As I've closely followed the remarkable work of entrepreneurs in the Clean Deep-Tech environment (such as Northvolt), it's clear that addressing the structural challenges posed by Climate Change requires more than just software solutions; fundamental structural changes are essential to combat global warming. Equally, I've observed the significant hurdles faced by these entrepreneurs when scaling their businesses, with Raising Capital emerging as a major obstacle. This insightful report, commissioned by Planet A, Norrsken VC, and Speedinvest, sheds light on the root causes of the Growth Capital Gap faced by Climate Hardware Startups. Here are the key insights: 💡 (Not so) Obviously, Hardware Is Different From Software: From the perspective of early-stage investors, hardware companies present much more risk: - Capital intensity - Limited track records - Longer time-to-market - Technology risks associated with innovation 🌍 Climate Hardware Has Its Own Challenges: Information asymmetry and scars from the past: - The Cleantech 1.0 wave of the early 2000s left many investors feeling uneasy about growth potential - There are still NOT many specialists in the field working on the investor side, which increases the perception of risks when evaluating new technologies - Difficulty in showing financial traction - Competition in an uneven playing field with traditional industries optimized for lower prices 🚀 How can climate hardware companies mitigate risks and maximize sustained value? In addition to the exciting shift happening on the investor's side, with VCs specializing in climate solutions and hardware, startups have ample opportunity to innovate their business models. Namely, they can strategically minimize capital needed until commercial scale and maximize recurring revenues through strategic positioning in the value chain or bundling products, services, and technologies for added value. 🔗 Dive deeper into the playbook: [Building and Scaling Climate Hardware: A Playbook](https://lnkd.in/e4iRS2EB) #ImpactInvesting #ClimateHardware #Sustainability #StartupInsights

In this episode of Premier Miton Investors Talking Markets, Alex Ross, Fund Manager of the Premier Miton Pan European Property Share Fund, discusses the prospects for the Pan European Property sector 👉 https://lnkd.in/eksGdp9Y Alex also explains why the move to green office space is creating such an opportunity and why the team have a focus on investing in #REITs, which are internally managed.