A Cardiff health tech firm, which has developed a system that measures how people react to the food they eat with the aim of informing healthier lifestyle choices, has secured a six-figure equity investment to support scale-up plans.
Glucose Republic (GR) has closed a £500,000 investment round from Deepbridge Capital and the Development Bank of Wales, to build the world’s first system focused on what impact food has upon by combining biology and software . The start-up was formed by Julian Shapley and David Haines, who were previously involved in developing the world’s first mobile-connected diabetes management platform.
Every person has a unique food fingerprint, which shows how we react to foods. The GR system allows users to directly measure how their body is reacting to the foods they eat and the things they do. It said that understanding the impact of glucose will enable customers to adapt their food plans to their own lifestyles.
GR chief executive David Haines said: “We are delighted that Deepbridge and the Development Bank of Wales have joined our mission to help customers understand the impact of their food choices, and benefit from our glucose proposition.”
Deepbridge investment manager Ben Carter said: “At Deepbridge, we invest in strong teams that have the skills and knowledge to create globally scalable products. We look forward to working in partnership with GR during its continued development and commercialisation.”
Development Bank of Wales senior investment executive Doctor Richard Thompson said: “We are delighted to co-invest with Deepbridge again and to support Glucose Republic. Our equity investment will help Julian, David and the team realise their potential, improving people’s health by empowering individuals to choose the foods that are best for them.”
GR was advised by Capital Law. Deepbridge was represented by their in-house counsel, and the Development Bank of Wales was advised by Geldards.
Jordan Thomas from Capital Law said: “GR is an exciting and innovative business, focused on bettering health and wellness through its unique technology. It’s been a pleasure to work alongside David, Julian and the team in securing this investment and we expect the company to flourish with the support of Development Bank of Wales and Deepbridge.”
