UK-based Segura Systems, a provider of supply chain protection solutions for various sectors, has raised two million pounds in funding. The investor was Octopus Ventures.
PRESS RELEASE
21st December 2015: Octopus Ventures, one of Europe’s leading venture capital investors, has announced a £2m investment into Segura Systems, the innovative UK technology house delivering supply chain protection to a range of industries. The cloud-based technology creates a comprehensive audit trail that allows all businesses to track every element of their purchases, not only from direct suppliers but also throughout the extended supply chain.
This Series A funding round is the first institutional money raised by the business, which was first conceived five years ago by Peter Needle and Ian Hepworth with the aim of helping businesses regain control of their supply chains. Segura Systems has already attracted the likes of Debenhams and Reiss as customers, and today’s funding will be used to help further develop the technology as the business seeks to improve supply chain oversight across a number of sectors.
Today’s news comes just weeks after the latest change to the Modern Slavery Act, which explicitly states that businesses over a certain size must be able to demonstrate transparency in supply chains. In November, the UK Government further established its commitment to tackling modern slavery by appointing Kevin Hyland as the UK’s first Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner.
Peter Needle, CEO and co-founder of Segura Systems, commented: “In recent years consumers have begun to ask more of their retailers – people want to know that the goods they’re buying have been ethically and responsibly produced. There has also been a clear and necessary realisation that modern slavery is a real issue, posing both a severe supply chain and wider ethical risk, and we certainly welcome the Government’s commitment to tackling these issues.
“Today’s funding will allow us to further develop the cloud-based Segura Systems technology and expand our team, so we can work with more businesses and organisations, helping protect them from unethical, non-compliant and uncompetitive suppliers. We’re pleased to be working with Octopus and have already benefited from the team’s help and advice.”
Malcolm Ferguson of Octopus Ventures added: “Globalisation has been an incredible force, but one direct impact is that extended supply chains are now astonishingly complex. For a business to have full visibility on its direct and extended supply chains is getting more difficult, at a time when consumers and policy-makers are growing ever more aware of the ethical risks at work. When we met Segura Systems, we were impressed with both their technology and the brands they are already working with. Peter and Ian are leading a great team and we’re looking forward to working with them in the coming years.”
About Segura Systems
Segura Systems is an innovative UK technology business that specialises in supply chain visibility software. The company’s cloud-based SaaS system is suitable for use across a wide range of sectors and enables businesses to reassert control over all tiers of their supply chain.
Customers can use Segura to simply map out their supply chains and trace every order through to fulfilment, helping them to safeguard their businesses against unethical, non-compliant and unauthorised suppliers. The system is ideal for companies affected by Section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act but is also scalable for smaller organisations looking to gain oversight and increase efficiency in their supply chain. Segura also works with specialist partners to offer full supply chain auditing services.
Segura works with customers across the retail, automotive and construction industries, including household names such as Debenhams and Reiss. Founded in 2012, the business operates out of a central London office, with a technology and operations headquarters based on Loughborough University’s fast-growing Science and Enterprise Park.
For more information, visit www.segurasystems.com.
About Octopus Ventures
At Octopus Ventures we look for unusually talented teams intent on building businesses that can scale explosively to create, transform or dominate an industry. In recent years we have been fortunate to back the founding teams of over 50 companies across Europe, including Zoopla Property Group, Secret Escapes, SwiftKey and graze.com.
We can invest from £250,000 to £25 million in a first round of funding and will look to follow in subsequent rounds. We are proud to be known as one of the most entrepreneur friendly investors in Europe and a significant part of our portfolio consists of referrals from existing teams we work with or serial entrepreneurs who we have previously backed.
Octopus Ventures is part of the Octopus group. Octopus is a fast-growing UK fund management business with leading positions in several specialist sectors including property finance, healthcare, energy and smaller company investing. Founded in 2000, Octopus manages more than £5.5 billion of funds on behalf of 50,000 investors.
For journalists in their professional capacity only. The value of an investment, and any income from it, can fall or rise. Investors may not get back the full amount they invest. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results. Issued by Octopus Investments Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered office: 33 Holborn, London EC1N 2HT. Registered in England and Wales No. 3942880
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