At our recent Labour Policy Insights event Dr Rebecca Harding, Senior Fellow of the British Foreign Policy Group, provided valuable insights into the current global economic landscape and its implications for UK investors ahead of the Autumn budget on 30 October.
Despite widespread market volatility - driven by geopolitical conflicts and elections affecting 49% of the global population this year - Dr Harding highlighted significant opportunities in infrastructure, sustainability, and defence sectors. These sectors have demonstrated particular resilience to global uncertainty, with government initiatives such as GB Energy and the National Wealth Fund further strengthening infrastructure and sustainability positions. These initiatives reflect a clear focus on job creation and growth while reinforcing the UK's commitment to energy security and its green agenda. Meanwhile, increased tensions in Ukraine and the Middle East have heightened focus on national defence capabilities Dr Harding noted.
Another key theme discussed was the importance of often-overlooked economic relationships and their hidden influence on the budget. While perhaps not headline-grabbing, Dr Harding stressed how strategic partnerships are proving crucial for the UK's economic future. She highlighted three key relationships: expanding cooperation with Germany, which has implications for broader EU relations; increased oil imports from India; and growing investment ties with Saudi Arabia, representing a significant source of inward investment.
The complex US-UK relationship received particular attention during Dr Harding's speech, especially regarding its influence on broader international trade dynamics with China. Dr Harding emphasised the importance of carefully managing exposure to China, given the consistently hawkish approach from the US, regardless of who occupies the White House. As the UK navigates an increasingly unstable global landscape characterised by economic warfare and political uncertainty, alignment with US positions on key issues becomes increasingly critical, she suggested.
Dr Harding described how a slow and methodical approach to policy implementation reflects a deliberate strategy by the UK to maintain market stability and, as a result, attract global investment. The government's priority is to position the UK as a secure, business-friendly environment, likely leading to measured policy implementation across these key sectors.
These insights underscore the importance of strategic planning and resilient investment approaches in today's challenging global environment.
You can view the full event recording <a rel="noopener" href="https://youtu.be/CpwIyJs42xk" target="_blank">here</a>.
The views and opinions expressed by third party speakers may not necessarily represent the views and opinions of Foresight Group LLP.

Insights from Dr Rebecca Harding at Foresight's Labour Policy Insights event

<ul>
<li style="font-weight: bold;">Assured Insights receives cash injection for expansion plans</li>
<li style="font-weight: bold;">Investment from the £50 million IFW – Foresight Equity Finance, which is managed by Foresight Group as part of the Investment Fund for Wales </li>
<li style="font-weight: bold;">Operated by the British Business Bank, the £130 million Investment Fund for Wales supporting Wales’ smaller businesses at all stages of their development&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
CARDIFF: Foresight Group (“Foresight”) - a leading regional private equity and infrastructure investment manager - has announced an equity investment, through the Investment Fund for Wales (“IFW”), into Assured Insights (“the Company”), a fast-growing and disruptive data analytics business.&nbsp;
IFW – Foresight Equity Finance has invested alongside Assured Insight’s founders, as well as the Midlands Engine Investment Fund (“MEIF”), which is also operated by the British Business Bank. Foresight was appointed as fund manager to MEIF in 2018.
Assured Insights will use the funding to scale its operations, including opening a new office in South Wales where the Company plans to set up its data engineering hub.
Assured Insights has developed DataWorks which supports its clients in consolidating siloed data from business systems into a single, trusted platform. This platform is used to deliver easy to digest, reliable and performant core business metrics to the business, providing several use cases such as Business Intelligence, Analytics and Ai.
Current customers include financial services companies and hospitality groups, including The Ivy Restaurant Group, Sucden Financial and Vernon Building Society.&nbsp;
Jon Singleton, Co-founder and CEO of Assured Insights, said: “Foresight has a strong track record of working with fast-growing businesses as they scale up and professionalise. &nbsp;We are pleased to select Foresight as our equity partner as we look to accelerate our growth trajectory.
“Assured Insights has discovered that most organisations find themselves in a position where their data capabilities don’t support their aspirations. There are many technologies and solutions which claim to help with this, however, these all rely on good quality data. &nbsp;
“Achieving a state of data maturity which sees trusted data being available to the whole business is a big challenge for many companies. DataWorks, by Assured Insights, addresses this and builds a solid data foundation needed to support any modern, data proficient business. The simplicity of delivery, a competitive price point and quick delivery time makes DataWorks an obvious choice.”
Steve Galvin, Principal for IFW – Foresight Equity Finance, added:&nbsp;“Assured Insights is a tremendously exciting, fast-growing business with a hugely ambitious management team. Its new Welsh office will have a positive impact on the local economy through the creation of skilled jobs. We are thrilled to be supporting Assured Insights and look forward to partnering with the team on their growth journey. “Businesses with multiple software systems are increasingly managing complex data sets and Assure Insights’ software is a step change in the market. By creating the data architecture and combining it with analytics and visualisation, the software provides an excellent end-to-end solution.”
Mark Sterritt, Director, Nations and Regions Investment Funds at the British Business Bank, said: “We are pleased to see the Investment Fund for Wales actively working for innovative businesses like Assured Insights, who are committed to expanding their operations in Wales, with the opening of their new Cardiff office.
“Their activity in the market is impressive and we hope that our support will help them as they continue to scale.”
The £130 million Investment Fund for Wales (“IFW”) covers all areas of Wales and provides loans from £25,000 to £2 million and equity investment up to £5 million to help a range of small and medium sized businesses to start up, scale up or stay ahead.&nbsp;
The purpose of the Investment fund for Wales is to drive sustainable economic growth by supporting innovation and creating local opportunity for new and growing businesses across Northern Ireland. The Investment fund for Wales will increase the supply and diversity of early-stage finance for Wales’ smaller businesses, providing funds to firms that might otherwise not receive investment and help to break down barriers in access to finance.&nbsp;
Foresight invests in promising, growing companies, providing equity or debt to meet the needs of founders, management teams and specialist lenders wherever they are on their journey. Foresight works with the growing companies it supports to enable founders and management teams to build resilient and prosperous companies that have a positive impact on the societies in which they operate.&nbsp;
ENDS
Notes to Editors
For more information contact:
Lucy Sherwood: marketing@foresightgroup.eu / +44 (0)20 3667 8100&nbsp; Chris Barry: Barry@thisisinfluential.com / +44 (0)7733 103 693
About the Investment fund for Wales
• Operated by the British Business Bank, the IFW provides a mix of debt and equity funding. IFW will offer a range of commercial finance options with smaller loans from £25k to £100k, debt finance from £100k to £2m and equity investment up to £5 million. It works alongside the in-region small business finance ecosystem, including local intermediaries such as accountants, fund managers and banks, to support Wales’s smaller businesses at all stages of their development. <a href="http://www.investmentfundwales.co.uk">www.investmentfundwales.co.uk</a>
&nbsp;• The funds in which the IFW invests are open to businesses with material operations, or planning to open material operations across the whole of Wales.
• Supported by Nations and Regions Investments Limited, a subsidiary of British Business Bank plc, the Bank is a development bank wholly owned by HM Government.
Neither Nations and Regions Investments Limited nor British Business Bank plc are authorised or regulated by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) or the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
• For investment by NRIL at the sub-fund level the investment from the Nations and Regions Investments Limited into Assured Insights does not amount to any endorsement or warranty from Nations and Regions Investments Limited, the British Business Bank plc or the government of the United Kingdom.
&nbsp;• For investment by IFW sub-fund at the investee company level the investment from The Investment fund for Wales into Assured Insights does not amount to any endorsement or warranty from Nations and Regions Investments Limited, the British Business Bank plc or the government of the United Kingdom.
__________________________________________________________________________________
<ul>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: bold;">Assured Insights yn derbyn chwistrelliad arian parod ar gyfer cynlluniau ehangu </li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: bold;">Buddsoddiad o £50 miliwn IFW/CBC– Foresight Equity Finance, a reolir gan Foresight Group fel rhan o Gronfa Buddsoddi Cymru </li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: bold;">Yn cael ei gweithredu gan Fanc Busnes Prydain, y Gronfa Buddsoddi gwerth £130 miliwn i Gymru sy’n cefnogi busnesau llai Cymru ar bob cam o’u datblygiad</li>
</ul>
CAERDYDD: Mae Foresight Group (“Foresight”) – rheolwr buddsoddi ecwiti preifat a seilwaith rhanbarthol blaenllaw – wedi cyhoeddi buddsoddiad ecwiti, drwy Gronfa Buddsoddi Cymru (“IFW/CBC”), i Assured Insights (“y Cwmni”), sef cynllun cyflym. - busnes dadansoddet ddata sy'n tyfu ac yn tarfu.
IFW - Mae Foresight Equity Finance wedi buddsoddi ochr yn ochr â sylfaenwyr Assured Insight, yn ogystal â Chronfa Buddsoddi Mewn Injan Canolbarth Lloegr (“MEIF”), sydd hefyd yn cael ei gweithredu gan Fanc Busnes Prydain. Penodwyd Foresight yn rheolwr cronfa i MEIF yn 2018.
Bydd Assured Insights yn defnyddio’r cyllid i raddfa ei weithrediadau, gan gynnwys agor swyddfa newydd yn Ne Cymru lle mae’r Cwmni’n bwriadu sefydlu ei ganolbwynt peirianneg data.
Mae Assured Insights wedi datblygu DataWorks sy'n cefnogi ei gleientiaid i gyfuno data siled o systemau busnes yn un llwyfan y gellir ymddiried ynddo. Defnyddir y platfform hwn i ddarparu metrigau busnes craidd dibynadwy a pherfformiwr hawdd eu deall i'r busnes, gan ddarparu sawl achos defnydd megis fel cudd-wybodaeth Busnes, Dadansoddeg ac Ai.
Mae cwsmeriaid presennol yn cynnwys cwmnïau gwasanaethau ariannol a grwpiau lletygarwch, gan gynnwys The Ivy Restaurant Group, Sucden Financial a Vernon Building Society.
Dywedodd Jon Singleton, Cyd-sylfaenydd a Phrif Swyddog Gweithredol Assured Insights: “Mae gan Foresight hanes cryf o weithio gyda busnesau sy’n tyfu’n gyflym wrth iddynt gynyddu a phroffesiynoli. Rydym yn falch o ddewis Foresight fel ein partner ecwiti wrth i ni geisio cyflymu ein taflwybr twf.
“Mae Assured Insights wedi darganfod bod y rhan fwyaf o sefydliadau yn cael eu hunain mewn sefyllfa lle nad yw eu galluoedd data yn cefnogi eu dyheadau. Mae yna lawer o dechnolegau ac atebion sy'n honni eu bod yn helpu gyda hyn, fodd bynnag, mae'r rhain i gyd yn dibynnu ar ddata o ansawdd da.
“Mae cyrraedd cyflwr o aeddfedrwydd data sy’n gweld data dibynadwy ar gael i’r busnes cyfan yn her fawr i lawer o gwmnïau. Mae DataWorks, gan Assured Insights, yn mynd i'r afael â hyn ac yn adeiladu sylfaen ddata cadarn sydd ei hangen i gefnogi unrhyw fusnes modern sy'n hyfedr o ran data. Mae symlrwydd y cyflenwad, pwynt pris cystadleuol ac amser dosbarthu cyflym yn gwneud DataWorks yn ddewis amlwg.”&nbsp;
Ychwanegodd Steve Galvin, Pennaeth IFW – Foresight Equity Finance: “Mae Assured Insights yn fusnes hynod gyffrous sy’n tyfu’n gyflym gyda thîm rheoli hynod uchelgeisiol. Bydd ei swyddfa Gymreig newydd yn cael effaith gadarnhaol ar yr economi leol drwy greu swyddi medrus. Rydym wrth ein bodd yn cefnogi Assured Insights ac yn edrych ymlaen at weithio mewn partneriaeth â’r tîm ar eu taith dwf. 
“Mae busnesau sydd â systemau meddalwedd lluosog yn rheoli setiau data cymhleth yn gynyddol ac mae meddalwedd Assured Insights yn newid mawr yn y farchnad. Trwy greu’r bensaernïaeth data a’i gyfuno a dadansoddet a delweddu, mae’r feddalwedd yn darparu datrysiad penben rhagorol.”
Dywedodd Mark Sterritt, Cyfarwyddwr Cronfeydd Buddsoddi’r Gwledydd a’r Rhanbarthau ym Manc Busnes Prydain: “Rydym yn falch o weld Cronfa Buddsoddi Cymru yn gweithio’n frwd dros fusnesau arloesol fel Assured Insights, sy’n ymrwymedig i ehangu eu gweithrediadau yng Nghymru, gyda’r swyddfa newydd yng Nghaerdydd agor.
“Mae eu gweithgaredd yn y farchnad yn drawiadol ac rydym yn gobeithio y bydd ein cefnogaeth yn eu helpu wrth iddynt barhau i gynyddu.” Mae Cronfa Buddsoddi Cymru o £130 miliwn (“IFW/CBC”) yn cwmpasu pob rhan o Gymru ac yn darparu benthyciadau o £25,000 i £2 filiwn a buddsoddiad ecwiti hyd at £5 miliwn i helpu amrywiaeth o fusnesau bach a chanolig i ddechrau busnes, cynyddu neu aros ar y blaen.
Pwrpas y Gronfa Buddsoddi i Gymru yw sbarduno twf economaidd cynaliadwy drwy gefnogi arloesedd a chreu cyfleoedd lleol i fusnesau newydd a busnesau sy’n tyfu ledled Gogledd Iwerddon. Bydd Cronfa Buddsoddi Cymru yn cynyddu cyflenwad ac amrywiaeth cyllid cyfnod cynnar ar gyfer busnesau llai Cymru, gan ddarparu cyllid i gwmnïau na fyddent o bosibl yn cael buddsoddiad fel arall, a helpu i chwalu rhwystrau o ran mynediad at gyllid.
Mae Foresight yn buddsoddi mewn cwmnïau addawol sy’n tyfu, gan ddarparu ecwiti neu ddyled i ddiwallu anghenion sylfaenwyr, timau rheoli a benthycwyr arbenigol lle bynnag y maent ar eu taith. Mae Foresight yn gweithio gyda'r cwmnïau cynyddol y mae'n eu cefnogi i alluogi sylfaenwyr a thimau rheoli i adeiladu cwmnïau gwydn a ffyniannus sy'n cael effaith gadarnhaol ar y cymdeithasau y maent yn gweithredu ynddynt.
DIWEDD
Nodiadau i Olygyddion
Am fwy o wybodaeth cysylltwch â:
Lucy Sherwood: marketing@foresightgroup.eu / +44 (0)20 3667 8100&nbsp; Chris Barry: Barry@thisisinfluential.com / +44 (0)7733 103 693
Ynglŷn â Chronfa Buddsoddi Cymru • Wedi'i weithredu gan Fanc Busnes Prydain, mae'r IFW/CBC yn darparu cymysgedd o gyllid dyled ac ecwiti. Bydd IFW yn cynnig amrywiaeth o opsiynau cyllid masnachol gyda benthyciadau llai o £25k i £100k, cyllid dyled o £100k i £2m a buddsoddiad ecwiti hyd at £5 miliwn. Mae’n gweithio ochr yn ochr â’r ecosystem cyllid busnesau bach yn y rhanbarth, gan gynnwys cyfryngwyr lleol megis cyfrifwyr, rheolwyr cronfeydd a banciau, i gefnogi busnesau llai Cymru ar bob cam o’u datblygiad. <a href="https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk/finance-options/nations-and-regions-investment-funds/investment-fund-for-wales">Cronfa Buddsoddi Cymnru</a>&nbsp;
• Mae’r arian y mae IFW yn ei fuddsoddi yn agored i fusnesau sydd â gweithrediadau materol, neu sy’n bwriadu agor gweithrediadau deunydd ledled Cymru gyfan.
• Gyda chefnogaeth Nations and Regions Investments Limited, is-gwmni i British Business Bank plc, mae’r Banc yn fanc datblygu sy’n eiddo’n gyfan gwbl i Lywodraeth EM.
• Nid yw Nations and Regions Investments Limited na British Business Bank plc wedi’u hawdurdodi na’u rheoleiddio gan yr Awdurdod Rheoleiddio Darbodus (PRA) na’r Awdurdod Ymddygiad Ariannol (FCA)
• Ar gyfer buddsoddiad gan NRIL ar lefel yr is-gronfa nid yw’r buddsoddiad gan y Nations and Regions Investments Limited i Assured Insights yn gyfystyr ag unrhyw ardystiad neu warant gan Nations and Regions Investments Limited, Banc Busnes Prydain ccc na llywodraeth y Deyrnas Unedig.
• Ar gyfer buddsoddiad gan is-gronfa IFW ar lefel y cwmni buddsoddi nid yw’r buddsoddiad o Gronfa Fuddsoddi Cymru i Assured Insights yn gyfystyr ag unrhyw ardystiad neu warant gan Nations and Regions Investments Limited, Banc Busnes Prydain ccc na llywodraeth y Deyrnas Unedig.

Data innovator Assured Insights sets sights on Wales growth after investment

<ul style="margin-top: 0cm;">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 0cm; margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: bold;">Maiden exit from Foresight Scottish Growth Fund achieving 2.4x return</li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 0cm; margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: bold;">Innovative business opened technology hub in Edinburgh creating skilled jobs as it scaled rapidly following investment in 2020</li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 0cm; margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: bold;">Foresight is actively investing in growing companies across Scotland and is set to ramp-up activity across a wide range of sectors and transaction types</li>
</ul>
Edinburgh, 07 October, 2024: Foresight Group (“Foresight”), a leading regional private equity and infrastructure investment manager, has successfully exited Substantive Research (“Substantive” or “the Company”), an industry-leading FinTech providing in-depth product and pricing comparison for investment research spend, market data and investment research content.
Substantive, with bases in London and Edinburgh, provides research and market data benchmarking to a growing base of over 100 global clients, across Europe and North America, including asset managers, hedge funds, wealth managers, sell-side institutions and private markets.&nbsp;
The exit has enabled Substantive to join Netherlands-headquartered, Euronext, a pan-European stock exchange and market infrastructure provider. Foresight has achieved a 2.4x return on its original investment and marks the first exit from the Foresight Scottish Growth Fund, which is backed by the Scottish Government.
Substantive was founded in 2015 by Chief Executive Mike Carrodus who partnered with Foresight in 2020, a move which enabled significant growth, including the launch of a technology hub in Edinburgh alongside significant investment in new products including market data and ESG research benchmarking products.
Foresight also introduced Graham Paterson, an experienced private equity and FinTech founder, as Chair, to support Mike as the Company scaled at pace. A new Chief Technology Officer was appointed to oversee the launch of a Technology Hub in Edinburgh, with the tech team driving the automation of Substantive products which facilitated its rapid growth.&nbsp; &nbsp; Foresight invests in regional growth and buyout deals to support founders, entrepreneurs and management teams to achieve their growth ambitions or release equity from their company. In addition, it invests venture capital funding into innovative, fast-growing companies in the enterprise software, advanced engineering and deep-tech sectors that are looking to scale responsibly at pace.
Mike Carrodus, CEO of Substantive Research said: “Foresight have been an excellent partner for us as we have grown rapidly, bringing a flexible approach, great industry knowledge and connections as well as funding.
“Euronext’s acquisition of Substantive Research underlines our team’s hard work in creating a unique price benchmarking database in investment research and market data. With the research market poised for yet more regulatory-driven changes, plus market data consumers grappling with increasing costs and pricing opacity, we are excited to be able to accelerate our coverage and data depth. We can accelerate development into areas where we know our clients need greater market transparency.”
Daniel Halliday, Director at Foresight Group in Edinburgh, said: "We are delighted to have made our first exit from the Foresight Scottish Growth Fund – Substantive Research is a strong entrepreneurial success story and it’s been a pleasure working with Mike and the team to build a tech-enhanced business to benchmark price and supply in the investment research and data markets. It’s been a pleasure working with the team to establish its technology hub in Edinburgh, bringing investment and highly skilled jobs to the Scottish economy.
“With a flexible approach and significant funding available to invest in growing businesses across Scotland our team here is keen to meet entrepreneurs, management teams and their advisers to discuss how we can support their growth strategies and realise their ambitions.”
ENDS
Advisers to Foresight: &nbsp; Legal: Vialex&nbsp; Corporate Finance: NovitasFTCL
Advisers to Substantive Research: Legal: Vialex&nbsp; Corporate Finance: NovitasFTCL&nbsp;
&nbsp;
For more information contact:
Lucy Sherwood: marketing@foresightgroup.eu / +44 (0)20 3667 8100&nbsp; Chris Barry: Barry@thisisinfluential.com / +44 (0)7733 103 693

Foresight makes successful exit from industry-leading research and market data benchmarking FinTech Substantive Research

Foresight makes successful exit from Substantive Research achieving 2.4x return

<h3>Introduction&nbsp;</h3>
Low-carbon hydrogen is widely recognised as a crucial component in achieving global net-zero emissions targets, particularly for decarbonising industries where electrification alone is not a viable solution.
After years of early market development whilst the technical and regulatory foundations are established, the sector is finally taking off. &nbsp;Europe is leading the charge through the implementation of mandates that are pushing industry players to secure hydrogen to avoid penalties. The US, through the Inflation Reduction Act, is incentivising hydrogen production through tax credits. Other jurisdictions like Japan have also legislated import subsidies.
Mature policy frameworks are providing the push and confidence the industry needs to sign binding offtake agreements with suppliers. As a result, major demand centers like Europe and Japan are announcing an increasing number of agreements between hydrogen producers and offtakers.&nbsp;
The maturation of policy and the entry of offtakers into the market have led to a rapid acceleration in project development and investment opportunities. With a pipeline of exclusive, actionable projects in the hydrogen sector that exhibit infrastructure-like characteristics, Foresight sees robust investment prospects. While settled policies and the growing presence of offtakers contribute to market sustainability, there is still a shortage of financing. This gap creates a unique opportunity for investors to seek higher returns.

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Latest News & Insights

Data innovator Assured Insights sets sights on Wales growth after investment

Foresight makes successful exit from Substantive Research achieving 2.4x return

Low Carbon Hydrogen: The Time is Now

Insights from Dr Rebecca Harding at Foresight's Labour Policy Insights event

Data innovator Assured Insights sets sights on Wales growth after investment

Foresight makes successful exit from Substantive Research achieving 2.4x return

Low Carbon Hydrogen: The Time is Now

Insights from Dr Rebecca Harding at Foresight's Labour Policy Insights event

Data innovator Assured Insights sets sights on Wales growth after investment

Foresight makes successful exit from Substantive Research achieving 2.4x return

Low Carbon Hydrogen: The Time is Now

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