W2 Global Data Secures New Co-investment

CARDIFF, Wales, April 25, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

W2, a provider of SaaS, B2B software solutions and data services, has secured a series A investment. The investment is for growth capital to fund the expansion of its sales, marketing and technical capability in the UK and international markets.

W2 Global Data (W2), which provides a range of Software as a Service (SaaS) products for the Know Your Customer (KYC), Anti Money Laundering (AML) and fraud prevention due diligence markets, has received Mercia Fund Management's largest ever Growth Fund investment and a substantial follow on investment from Finance Wales. The rest of the co-investment comes from existing shareholders and Thorium Technology Investors (TTI).

Since 2014, W2 has almost doubled its revenue every year and following this substantial funding round, it is now able to accelerate plans to expand the team, develop new products and extend its global reach.

W2 offers customers the ability to perform real-time identity verification and anti-money laundering checks against consumers and corporates during the process of opening an account.

The company targets firms in the regulated, government and business community across the globe, and is primarily focused on selling to the gaming, payments and foreign exchange markets on multi-year revenue contracts.

Cardiff based W2 was founded by CEO Warren Russell in 2011 after building significant experience in the anti-money laundering, fraud and identity verification markets.

Warren Russell, CEO of W2, said:

"W2 has grown from strength to strength in the last few years and this investment will allow our business to establish its position as a key world player in the field. We have a rapidly growing customer base and we can support them with an expanding team, creating job opportunities in the local area and further afield." 

Julian Dennard, Investment Director at Mercia Fund Management, said:

"We are delighted to support W2 and back a management team which is highly experienced in in the anti-fraud sector and cloud-based software companies. SaaS technology is one of Mercia's chosen areas of focus and so we are pleased to be able to support Warren and his team as they continue to scale." 

Richard Thompson, Senior Investment Executive at Finance Wales, said:

"We are delighted to co-invest with Mercia in this latest round to support Warren and his team in the next phase of their expansion. W2 has made impressive progress year-on-year since our initial investments, when they relocated their headquarters to Cardiff. With this investment they are positioned to accelerate their growth as their customers address the increasing regulatory demands companies must now meet." 

About Mercia Fund Management Ltd 

Mercia Fund Management provides tax-efficient SEIS & EIS capital to early stage businesses, particularly those residing in the Midlands, the North of England and Scotland.

Mercia Fund Management is an FCA-authorised and regulated fund manager under FSMA (FRN: 524856).

Mercia Fund Management is a wholly owned subsidiary of Mercia Technologies PLC.

www.merciafund.co.uk

About W2 Global Data Solutions (W2) 

W2 has been trading since 2011 as a trusted provider of SaaS, B2B software solutions and data services enabling organisations to achieve regulatory compliance in relation to KYC (Know Your Customer), combatting fraud, AML (Anti Money Laundering) protection and frictionless customer on-boarding.

Over 100 organisations around the world rely on data and/or services provided by W2 to meet their regulatory or risk management requirements, and W2 have partnered with some of the world's largest data providers to ensure their customers get simple access to reliable information.

The unique W2 solutions require minimal implementation and simplify how organisations conduct regulatory customer due diligence on individuals, organisations, suppliers, staff, tenants and employees on an international scale.

About Finance Wales 

Finance Wales was established by the Welsh Government in 2001 and provides commercial funding to small and medium-sized businesses throughout Wales to enable them to realise their potential for innovation and growth. The company is part of the Finance Wales Group and in 2015-16 the Group invested £63 million through 268 debt-equity investments in growing businesses.

The Finance Wales Group, one of the UK's largest SME investors, has in excess of £1 billion of funds under management across all SME investment fund and the Help to Buy - Wales scheme. The Group has invested more than £500 million through more than 4,079 investments.

Press Contacts: For further information contact -
Jen Lau
Marketing & PR Executive for Mercia Technologies PLC.
Tel: +44(0)345-094-8886
Mob: 07940-938-488
Email: [email protected]

Katy Horrocks
Marketing Director for Mercia Technologies PLC.
Tel: +44(0)345-094-8886
Mob: 07725-218-579
Email: [email protected]

Press Contacts: For further information about Mercia Technologies PLC contact -
Buchanan (Financial PR Advisers)
Bobby Morse, Victoria Hayns, Stephanie Watson
www.buchanan.uk.com
Tel: +44(0)20-7466-5000

Press Contact:
Alexia Mei
Marketing & Support Manager for W2 Global Data (W2)
Tel: +44(0)300-088-9542
Email: [email protected]

Press Contact:
Jayne Lutwyche
Tel: 029-2033-8128
Email: [email protected]

SOURCE W2 Global Data (W2)