Social Tech Trust pioneers a new approach to investment and backs health tech startup Xploro to empower young patients.
21 July 2021, London
Impact investor Social Tech Trust has made a revenue-based investment in Xploro as part of a broader drive to increase the availability and access to flexible and inclusive finance, and meet the needs of diverse, purpose-driven tech ventures as they grow.
Despite the UK being third in the world for investment in impact tech, 62% of social ventures do not have suitable finance in place. With revenue-based investing gaining traction in the US, Social Tech Trust’s approach is designed to enable early-stage social tech ventures to have more control over their path to growth.
Xploro, which is proven to reduce anxiety, uses augmented reality, gameplay and 3D interactive models of the hospital environment to familiarise children with treatments and procedures. An AI avatar chatbot which uses age-appropriate language to inform children of what to expect, reduces stress for young patients. Product development is overseen by an Expert Advisory Board of twelve children with different experiences of healthcare.
Ed Evans, CEO of Social Tech Trust said, “Time and time again, social tech ventures like Xploro, that have the potential to transform entire sectors of society, tell us that they are unable to access suitable capital to fuel their growth and make the change they want to see. Our investment approach is designed to be enabling, not prescriptive. At an early stage, most ventures don’t know what their growth path will look like, so they need flexibility and optionality to achieve their ambitions. We are thrilled to be able to support Xploro in the next stage of their journey, reaching more children and families going through one of the hardest times in their lives.”
Sutin Yang, Portfolio Manager at Social Tech Trust added “Our investment in Xploro is incredibly exciting not only because of the huge impact Xploro will have on young patients fear of medical treatments but also because we have created a new hybrid investment instrument for the UK, based on popular convertible loans which will provide truly flexible and patient financing for purpose driven tech startups to quickly access the capital they need to scale their impact ”
Dom Raban, co-founder and CEO of Xploro commented, “We need a healthcare system where people are included in decisions about their health and Xploro provides a platform to improve communication, understanding and health outcomes. This kind of capital is ideally suited to our current fundraising. It will enable us to deliver the next stage of our plans and build our revenues, so we are in a stronger position to determine the right growth path for Xploro”.
END
For more information about our investment approach, read our blog ‘Fair play: why sustainable impact needs a more flexible approach to investment’
Media Enquiries:
Jessica Dillon – hello@socialtechtrust.org