Andy Murray invests in five start-up firms

Andy Murray: "Giving recognition and support to British entrepreneurs is important to me."

World number two tennis player Andy Murray has made his first 2016 investments in start-up businesses on the crowdfunding platform Seedrs.

Murray identified the five businesses he wanted to support by investing undisclosed amounts into each one.

He plans to make further investments on the platform as the year continues as part of his strategic relationship with Seedrs.

His investments include Oppo Ice Cream, travel ticket subscription service CommuterClub, peer-to-peer lender Landbay, film streaming platform We Are Colony, and Readbug — the so-called “Netflix for Magazines.”

Murray said: “Giving recognition and support to British entrepreneurs is important to me, especially those who are the driving force behind growth-focused businesses.

“Every one of these entrepreneurs is inspirational and dedicated to their business and I’m excited to have invested in their team’s vision and work ethic.

“It’s been an exciting start to 2016 for me, for many reasons. To see Seedrs reach £100 million on the platform and so many ambitious and dynamic businesses currently fundraising, means it’s a great start to 2016 for them as well.”

Oppo Ice Cream successfully raised over £390,000 in just over a week on Seedrs, exceeding its fundraising target of £150,000 within just four hours of going live.

Oppo’s mission is to prove that health and indulgence can go hand in hand and that its ice cream with fewer calories than an apple is just the start.

CommuterClub is currently fundraising on Seedrs having raised more than £350,000 of its £650,000 target. 

CommuterClub offers season tickets as a subscription service.

Landbay, who recently announced a strategic investment from Zoopla, is back for its fifth Seedrs raise since December 2013.

The lender focuses on prime residential mortgages and is now the UK’s fastest growing peer-to-peer platform.

We Are Colony is currently raising £500,000 and has surpassed 70% of its target in just a fortnight.

The site creates edition bundles of quality films with extras, such as interviews, deleted scenes, stills and scripts.

Readbug offers a curated selection of independent magazines in one app.

Jeff Lynn, CEO and co-founder of Seedrs, said: “It’s great to see Andy supporting British entrepreneurs so actively on Seedrs by investing in their businesses.

“Seedrs is now the most active seed-stage equity investor in the UK, and our continued growth and leading position in the market are testament to our reputation and the support from people like Andy.”