Swansea-based healthcare business Cosi Care, which has developed a medical device providing instant itch relief and soothing for painful symptoms of skin conditions such as eczema, has secured a $1m investment to support its global expansion plans.
The venture has secured the investment as one of the five winners of the 43North startup competition, which is based in Buffalo, New York and attracts thousands of applicants from across the globe.
Lauren Bell, from Swansea, founded the brand in 2018 while a her final year studying design at Brunel University . The device was created after her brother, Rhys, was confined to bed for three months with an agonising eczema flare-up that led to topical steroid withdrawal. Her innovative brand has been recognised for its breakthrough product development for eczema and skin relief with over 50,000 customers in the 海角视频 and the revenue to date across the Cosi Care Group has now exceeded £3m.
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The company’s technology delivers targeted cooling and soothing sensations to the skin, helping users to reduce scratching to prevent damage and infections.
As one of five winners of the 43North competition, the $1m equity nvestment will allow the brand to expand to the US market. Cosi Care was also the only 海角视频 company to secure invesment It also won the People’s Choice Award, voted for by the Buffalo community, adding $25,000 funding to their prize and highlighting public appreciation for the innovative product designs.
This recognition marks a major milestone for Cosi Care and will assist in their mission to transform the way people experience chronic skin irritation.
Ms Bell said: “We are so proud to have received the recent funding from 43North, and to have also been recognised by the Buffalo community for the People’s Choice Award.
“Receiving this investment is a true testament to how universal our solution is - everyone knows someone with itchy skin. The response from our customers in the 海角视频 has been incredible, and we couldn’t be more excited to launch Cosi Care in the US.“Our mission is to offer relief and support to families raising children with eczema, and we believe everyone deserves to feel comfortable and confident in their skin - but that requires having access to products that really help. We are on a mission to outmatch the scratch globally.”
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Cofounder and chief finance officer, Sandip Leihal, said: “This is a major milestone for Cosi Care and for 海角视频 healthtech proving it can scale globally. We have built a medical grade device with real demand, strong unit economics and a model that can grow across markets.
“Securing US investment allows us to take a British innovation into one of the biggest healthcare markets in the world and build a category defining brand in a space that has seen little change for decades.”
Cosi Care confirmed that elements of its supply chain and product development will continue in the 海角视频, with further hiring planned.
Caron Group
Welsh care home operator, Caron Group, has bolstered its portfolio with a triple acquisition from Priory Group.
It has acquired purpose-built sites in Aberdare, Ammanford and Swansea in a deal brokered by specialist business property adviser Montane Care. Financial terms of the transaction are undisclosed.
The deal takes the number of Caron Group’s care homes to 17, all of which are in south and mid-Wales.
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The acquired homes are Parc Wern in Ammanford, Carmarthenshire, The Beeches in Aberdare in the Cynon Valley and St Mark’s Court in Swansea. The homes provide nursing and dementia care as well as palliative and respite care.
Between them they have 142 bedrooms in total,.
Caron Group was founded in 2002 with the acquisition of its first two care homes in Swansea. Chariman Sanjiv Joshi said: “We are delighted with the acquisition of St Mark’s Court, The Beeches and Parc Wern care homes and look forward to integrating these homes into Caron Group.”
Priory Group is divesting of a number of older people care homes, and in recent months Montane Care has brokered several transactions on its behalf, including the sale of Cooper House in Bradford to Strong Life Care, and Abbey Court in Bourne, Lincolnshire, and Avondale in Motherwell to Maven Healthcare.
Montane Care director Anthony Rae said: “We are pleased to have successfully undertaken the sale of Parc Wern, The Beeches and St Mark’s Court to Caron Group, an experienced regional operator.
“The homes proved an attractive acquisition opportunity and it was a pleasure to receive multiple offers in a short period of time.”
IPM Group
Following a period of significant growth international, Barry headquartered engineering business International Power and Marine (IPM) Group has acquired Singapore-based Celt-tech Marine & Offshore (CTM).
Having already completed over 16,000 projects worldwide already, and with ambitious plans to double its £27m turnover in the next five years, IPM’s latest acquisition bolsters its growing international offering across the 海角视频, Europe, UAE, and Japan.
The new acquisition in Asia will welcome all 15 members of the CTM team to newly formed IPM Group, and bolster IPM’s ability to service the marine and offshore sectors.
Randall Smith, chief executive of IPM Group, said: “The team in Singapore continues to deliver the high-quality outcomes and consistent successes that complement the IPM Group. Our longstanding partnership with Celt-tech made it the clear and strategic choice to expand our footprint in Asia.”
Chris Lewis, chief operating officer of IPM Group, said: “I have absolute confidence in the teams on the ground, and in our shared commitment to delivering what we do best, which is leveraging local expertise and deep insights to shape smarter, safer, and more sustainable solutions for clients around the globe.”
Celt-tech Marine & Offshore is headed up by managing director Craig Didio, and operations director, Thomas Davies. Founded in 2020 CTM’s expertise lies in shipbuilding, vessel repairs, upgrades, and conversion projects worldwide. CTM offers a comprehensive range of services, including engineering design, piping systems from carbon steel to exotic materials, structural fabrication, and electrical & instrumentation (E&I).
Mr Didio said: “As a company we have worked with the IPM Group team for several years now, and when the opportunity and discussions developed around this partnership, it was something we jumped at positively. Our values absolutely align with those of IPM as we strive to provide the most effective, and sustainable solutions that benefit both project needs and the environment.”
Mr Davies said:“We will continue to offer new and existing clients the broad range of services we offer including bespoke design and fabrication, turnkey projects, installation, and maintenance support but as a wider group, we’ll now be looking to enhance that portfolio of expertise by sharing our knowledge and opportunities with each other.”
Credas Technologies
Cardiff-based identity verification and anti-money laundering solutions firm, Credas Technologies, is being acquired in a £77.8m deal.
Owners of the expanding business, Toronto Stock Exchange listed cloud-based legal practice management software venture Dye & Durham, has agreed a sale to 海角视频 provider of anti-money laundering software SmartSearch.
Dye & Durham acquired Credas in November 2023, since which the Welsh firm’s revenues have grown by more than 100%. The value of that deal wasn’t disclosed, but is understood to have been in the region of £20m.
SmartSearch, whose acquisition agreement with Dye & Durham is subject to regulatory approvals, is committed is maintaining the Cardiff operation of Credas, which currently employs 46 and is actively recruiting. Credas currently supports over 1,000 legal and property clients with its customer onboarding and compliance checks.
Dye & Durham said it has supported the scale-up of Credas with the sale marking a successful return on investment.
Chief executive of Dye & Durham, George Tsivin, said: “This is an important strategic accomplishment for our new management team, which has come together over the past several months with a clear mandate to reset the business.
“The sale of Credas is directly aligned with that reset by reducing debt, strengthening the balance sheet, and reinforcing the foundation for sustainable shareholder value. At the same time, we remain focused on our customers, delivering modern, integrated products and exemplary service that help them run their businesses more efficiently every day. By executing on our priorities – deleveraging, putting customers first, and driving operational efficiency – we are positioning Dye & Durham to deliver long-term success and lasting value for shareholders.”
Chief executive of Credas, Tim Barnett, said; “With financial crime on the rise and fraud tactics evolving, digital identity verification is more critical than ever. Partnering with SmartSearch empowers us to help even more businesses protect themselves and focus on delivering quality service.”
Chief executive of SmartSearch, Phil Cotter, said: By joining forces with Credas, we combine our strengths to deliver unmatched innovation and service. Our clients will see immediate benefits as we continue to set the standard for digital compliance.”
As part of the transaction, Dye & Durham has entered into a commercial agreement with Credas and SmartSearch, ensuring continuity of service for the company’s practice management and data insights customers in the 海角视频.
Mr Tsivin added: “While Credas is a valuable business, it is not core to Dye & Durham’s global product offering. I want to thank Tim Barnett and the entire Credas team for their contributions. We are confident they will continue to be leaders in their field, and we look forward to maintaining a strong commercial relationship under their new ownership.”
Credas was established in 2016.