NEWS
Bestport Ventures Takes Stake in Intela Global LTD
January 18th 2010 - Bestport backs leading internet marketing company as part of £4.5 million fundraising to support European expansion
Bestport Ventures LLP (“Bestport”) is pleased to announce that it has invested £3.1 million ($5 million) as part of a £4.5 million fundraising round in Intela Global Ltd (“Intela”), a performance-based lead generation and email marketing company, to fund its expansion into mainland Europe and Australia.
Intela, founded in 2006 and based in London with offices in the United States, has grown rapidly since inception to become one of the leading email marketing companies in the UK with more than £12.5 million in annual revenue. Intela designs and manages online campaigns encompassing email marketing, lead generation, and affiliate advertising for clients including the Accident Advice Helpline, Citroën, T-Mobile and William Hill.
Following the successful fundraising, which will come from funds managed and advised by Bestport as well as ETV Capital SA (“ETV”), which will provide facilities and loans amounting to £1.4 million, James Stoddart and Mark Blandford will join Intela’s board as non-executive directors. James Stoddart is a co-founder of Bestport and has backed a number of successful businesses including Active Hotels Ltd, Cassium Technologies Ltd, Mfuse and Dr Foster Ltd. Mr. Blandford founded Sportingbet PLC in 1997 and later led its listing on the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange (AIM). In 2002, he was voted AIM Entrepreneur of the Year.
James Stoddart, Partner, Bestport Ventures LLP, commented: “Intela has experienced rapid growth and has excellent prospects to continue this by moving into the European market which continues to flourish, despite the current economic climate. Bestport has the opportunity to add value through our experience and contacts, as well as providing expansion capital with ETV to enable management to maximise their potential. By investing in strong management teams through the economic cycle we can help businesses capitalise on the best opportunities ahead of recovery and sustained growth.”
Jim Mansfield, CEO of Intela, commented: “Bestport’s track record in supporting ambitious growth companies made them the obvious choice. As an investor and our partner, they are ideally positioned to help us achieve our objectives. The new structure and the additional funding will enable Intela to further grow its business in Europe. Intela has a proven business model in the UK which it will now roll out to Australia, France, Spain and other European countries. This is an exciting phase in our development and we are pleased to welcome Mark and James to our board.”
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