Corporate finance specialists at regional accountancy firm PKF Francis Clark and legal experts from the Bristol office of Clarke Willmott have advised on the sale of one of the UK’s leading independent manufacturers of precision plastic components. Nailsea-based Nylaplas, which firms in a wide range of sectors including aerospace,...
Confidence levels among businesses in the South West have bounced back from the gloom of earlier this year – making the region one of only two to register an increase in optimism. Overall confidence rose five points last month to 34%, while companies in the region became far more...
Bristol employers are being invited to take part in a new £2m programme that will support hundreds of individuals across the West of England to learn new skills. The scheme, launched by the West of England Combined Authority (WECA), is designed to plug the skills gaps in the region...
The trade organisation for the underwater industry is to open a base in Bristol later this year. The Global Underwater Hub (GUH), which has its head office in Aberdeen, represents and promotes the underwater industry, including offshore energy, aquaculture, defence, telecoms and seabed minerals. It receives funding from the...
One of the UK’s largest regional fund managers has opened an office in Bristol to provide finance to small and medium-sized business through the British Business Bank’s new £200m South West Investment Fund. FW Capital will manage the debt finance fund for the north of the region, providing commercial...
A former University of Bristol student-turned-entrepreneur has donated £50,000 to help fund its next generation of start-up businesses. The donation from Rupert Baker has kick-started a new ‘founders’ pledge’ project through which entrepreneurs given funding by the university promise to donate some of their future earnings to student start-ups. ...
Bristol’s status as a global centre for innovation in telecoms hardware has been boosted by plans to open a £2.5m research centre in the city. The Future Telecoms Hub, which will launch this autumn on the Bristol & Bath Science Park at Emersons Green, will lead pioneering development work...
Bristol and the West of England will become the UK’s centre for electric vehicle technology when the long-expected green light is finally given for a battery gigafactory in Somerset, according to business leaders and politicians in the region. The government this week agreed a deal with Tata Group, which owns...
Bristol-based specialist corporate finance advisory firm Shaw & Co has helped seal a major deal that will boost the South West’s lead in advanced optical technology. The firm advised thin-film coating company Artemis Optical on its £8.9m sale to long-established Somerset specialist manufacturer of optical components and systems Gooch...
Profit warnings from South West companies listed on the London Stock Exchange soared by 66% in the first half of this year as the cost of living crisis hit consumers. According to new research by international accountancy group EY, 15 warnings were issued by quoted firms in the region...
Regional alternative finance lender South West Investment Group (SWIG) lent a record £14m to ambitious small and medium-sized businesses across the region in the past year, new figures show. The non-profit group, which supports viable businesses that cannot secure sufficient funding from their bank, provided 559 loans to 478...
Poku Osei, the founder and CEO of Babbasa, the Bristol social enterprise transforming the lives of young people from ethnic minority and low-income backgrounds, has won a unique social enterprise award. The Cambridge Social Innovation Prize, which was launched five years ago, celebrates five exceptional social entrepreneurs and recognises...
Growth capital investment group BGF’s Bristol team backed fast-growth businesses to the tune of £40m during the first half of this year as the region continued to provide fresh opportunities for funding. Capital investments were made across a diverse range of sectors including technology, healthcare, engineering and manufacturing. Among the...
