LocalGlobe and MMC Ventures backed the seed round to support the launch of its personalised menopause care application.
"At Vira, our vision is to fundamentally transform long term health and wellbeing for women. We believe better menopause care is the first step. Female health issues have historically been under-researched and under-invested, and this remains the case today. There is an opportunity to use technology to redress this balance by improving the collection and use of female data in healthcare. This first round of seed funding is a step towards realising our vision."
— Andrea Berchowitz, Co-founder & Chief Executive Officer
The funding round was closed in fourteen days with backing from existing shareholders and the Aviva Foundation.
"At 87%, we see building mental fitness foundations as a critical part of everyday life. Without strong foundations, we all struggle to fulfil our potential or recover quickly when the winds of change shift against us. With data sitting at the heart of our proposition, we can make this tangible for users and businesses. Whether it’s the user benefitting from better focus and performance, and therefore greater fulfilment in life, or businesses getting more from staff through improved productivity and efficiency, our measurements drive the insights needed to take appropriate action. This funding is testament to team’s work in the last 18 months and will pave the way for us to further realise our vision of improving the mental wellbeing of society, percent by percent."
The funding round was led by DSW Ventures with backing from Mercia and SFC Capital.
"I am delighted to welcome DSW Ventures and Mercia on board at this exciting time for the company. The raise was oversubscribed by 60%, helped by the continuing support of SFC Capital and our angel investors. This puts us in a strong position as we move into the next phase of taking our products to market."
The Glasgow space technology start-up has raised £3.1m from investors including Space Capital and the Scottish National Investment Bank to scale its connectivity platform.
"We immediately saw the opportunity with R3-IoT, which is essentially Nest for organisations with remote industrial facilities. This is the right company at the right time that will benefit tremendously from new backhaul capacity coming online through low-Earth orbit satellite communications."
The London-based start-up raised £3m from Octopus Ventures and several prominent founders to develop its stress reduction platform.
"We live in a society that’s created an unsustainable pattern of living where workplace culture is synonymous with burnout and stress is seen as a necessary by-product of success. The past 18 months have put a much-needed spotlight on the terrible impact of stress on our health, and for the first time, employers are taking notice."
