InMotion appoints Mike Smeed as managing director
InMotion Ventures, the venture capital arm of Jaguar Land Rover, has appointed Mike Smeed as managing director.
Smeed joins InMotion from his position as vice president at Shanghai-based Chery Jaguar Land Rover, a joint venture between Jaguar Land Rover and Chinese car manufacturer Chery.
The appointment comes at a time when Jaguar Land Rover has launched its ‘Open Innovation’ strategy as part of the company’s transformation into an electric-first business and carbon net zero company by 2039.
InMotion has already invested in start-ups across areas such as autonomy, connectivity, electrification, sustainability, fintech, and intelligent enterprise as part of the strategy. Investments include By Miles, the usage-based insurance provider and vehicle finance provider Carmoola.
Smeed said: “Jaguar Land Rover’s Open Innovation strategy is putting innovation at the heart of the business, bringing new thinking and opportunities, helping accelerate the delivery of the company’s Reimagine strategy.
“InMotion Ventures has an excellent reputation in the market, with an enviable portfolio today, and this is a fantastic opportunity to lead the fund to further success as we closer align with the business’ transformation plans.”
Smeed, who joins the recent hiring of Sam Nasrolahi as principal, will oversee InMotion’s continued investment in mobility start-ups.
Andrea Acerbi made partner at QVentures
QVentures has announced key management hires and the appointment of Andrea Acerbi to partner this month.
Acerbi has led the family office and distribution teams in raising capital for companies raising seed to Series C. This year, QVentures has participated in 24 rounds with companies raising over £330m.
QVentures also welcomed Ranjeet Sandu, joining as chief operating officer and Nick Hill, who joins as principal to work with family offices.
Leonard Curtis appoints Gary Cain as head of funding
Gary Cain has been appointed head of funding for Leonard Curtis as part of a new management structure.
Leonard Curtis is the largest privately-owned professional services provider of corporate restructuring and insolvency, funding and legal solutions in the UK and recently announced plans to double in size by 2025. Demand for the firm’s services has been increasing as businesses look for recovery solutions post pandemic and face a challenging economic climate.
The commercial finance brokerage, Reach, previously led by Cain, will now fall under the Leonard Curtis brand and become a service pillar for the group.
Cain said: “The Reach brand has really established itself in the last eight years and I am very proud of what it has achieved. There is a good understanding of our links to the wider group so it makes absolute sense now to integrate with the Leonard Curtis brand.
“By operating under one brand we will demonstrate a consistent, multi-disciplined approach and this is the key to expanding our services and helping more business owners with the required debt and funding advice in the SME/mid-market space.”
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