North East Commercial Law firm Square One Law has advised Newcastle-based One Utility Bill on a £1.7m equity investment led by the venture capital business of the Dow Schofield Watts group DSW Angels.
The funding round also saw participation from existing angel investors and the North East Innovation Fund, supported by the European Regional Development Fund, and managed by Northstar Ventures.
Founded in 2014 by CEO Chris Dawson and CTO Dale Knight, One Utility Bill consolidates household bills into a monthly payment, which can be split equally between housemates.
The new investment will be used to enhance both the consumer and business-partner propositions as well as develop its technical capability and new features.
Co-founder Chris Dawson commented: “The last few years have been incredibly exciting for us. This new investment will enable us to further build a stable and scalable platform for growth.
“Our customer-first approach means that people trust us and come back year after year. We now serve thousands of students, young professionals, families and others with our all-in-one service. Dale and I are excited about the next stage of growth.”
Chris added, “We are grateful to John and the team at Square One Law for the support and guidance through this investment. Their advice has been invaluable and they are great to work with.”
Keith Benson, founding partner of DSW Angels, added: “We are very excited by the opportunity to work with Chris, Dale and the team. They run a great business with the capability and – following this investment – the capital to significantly outperform competitors.
“During the ongoing crisis, the team have performed brilliantly – their resilience and capability continues to impress.
“This is the largest fundraise in our short history and the fact that we were oversubscribed was testament to their credibility and the strength of the business they have created.”
John Hammill, corporate partner at Square One Law, said: “In the current economic climate it’s testament to the underlying strengths of the business and management that the investment was successfully completed.”
