{"id":20480,"date":"2025-11-03T16:13:52","date_gmt":"2025-11-03T16:13:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/welshice.org\/?p=20480"},"modified":"2025-11-03T16:13:53","modified_gmt":"2025-11-03T16:13:53","slug":"new-how-they-funded-it-podcast-episode-deploy-techs-1-3m-strategy-for-10x-boost","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/welshice.org\/cy\/new-how-they-funded-it-podcast-episode-deploy-techs-1-3m-strategy-for-10x-boost\/","title":{"rendered":"New “How They Funded It” Podcast Episode: DEPLOY Tech CTO Beren Kayali Reveals the Strategy That Fuelled a 10x Growth"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What does it take for a Welsh tech startup to not just survive, but to achieve a rapid, transformative ’10x boost’?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The answer lies in the latest episode of “How They Funded It<\/a><\/strong>“, the podcast series from Welsh ICE and the British Business Bank<\/a><\/strong>. This week, we dive deep into the strategic financing journey of DEPLOY Tech<\/strong>, creators of inflatable, flat-packed water tanks transforming concrete infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chief Technology Officer Beren Kayali<\/strong> sits down to detail how she successfully navigated the complex funding landscape to secure over \u00a31.3 million<\/strong> in capital. This episode is a must-listen for founders, offering a tactical breakdown of how a precise mix of grants, prize money, and equity built the foundations for their explosive growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Lesley Williams, Welsh ICE CEO interviews Beren Kayali, Co-Founder & CTO at DEPLOY Tech<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Beren Kayali, an accomplished leader who is a Forbes 30 Under 30, an Enterprise Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, and Vodafone Business Woman of the Year 2024 in the UK, details the company’s powerful funding cocktail: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prize Money (\u00a3170K):<\/strong> Their innovative technology also earned them \u00a350K each from the InnovateUK Women in Innovation award and The Royal Academy of Engineering’s Enterprise Fellowship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Equity Investment (\u00a3612K):<\/strong> This included \u00a390K from friends and family, \u00a3250K from the Development Bank of Wales (DBW), and \u00a3187K from SFC Capital in their pre-seed round, followed by an \u00a385K bridge round.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Grants (\u00a3533K):<\/strong> They secured significant non-dilutive grant funding, including \u00a3350K from the Smart Grant by InnovateUK and \u00a3133K from SmartCymru by the Welsh Government.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Strategy for a “10x Boost”<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Beren shares the critical insight into their fundraising strategy\u2014it wasn’t just about the total figure, but the way different funding types amplified each other:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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“The equity funding gives us the freedom, but that one coupled with a government grant there is where the 10x boost happens\u2026 your risk appetite increases even further. The return of investment all of a sudden multiplies with a bigger factor.”<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

The funding was crucial for covering the substantial Capital Expenditure (CapEx) required for a hardware business, including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n