Of that total, £5m is provided by FF&P Private Equity, the private equity division of Fleming Family & Partners (FF&P), which was one of OB10's major existing investors, and is now the Company's largest individual shareholder.

This latest round of finance will be used to expand OB10's business in Europe, US and Asia, following recent progress in all three of these areas. In addition, the funds will be used to support the ongoing development of OB10's range of services in line with emerging customer requirements.

"The fact that a group as illustrious as FF&P should choose to underpin our growth in such a substantial way is a great compliment to OB10 as a company, and to the progress that we have made thus far," says Jamie Gunn, CEO, OB10. "With the support of our investors, we have delivered exactly what we set out to do over the last 18 months, including the continued expansion of our salesforce and channel in the face of sustained market demand, and the consistent performance of our sales teams in all territories."

"e-Invoicing certainly offers an attractive business proposition, since it enables companies to cut the cost of handling invoices, whilst also improving their on-time payments and providing much greater control over cash flow," says David Donnelly, CEO, FF&P Private Equity. "After seeing the OB10 network continue to grow in both membership and transaction volume following our earlier rounds of investment, we feel confident that additional funding at this stage will support even greater growth for the Company."

In addition to the lead investment from FF&P Private Equity, a significant proportion of the finance is made up of personal investment by employees of OB10, providing a good indication of the confidence that exists currently within OB10's business. OB10 Chairman David Newlands, for example, has again invested substantially.

"Without a doubt, this latest investment is a direct result of OB10's recent successes and progress since itsnce its last round of funding," says David Newlands, Chairman, OB10. "The confidence that existing investors have in the Company will not only enable OB10 to develop its business even further, but also negates the need for OB10 to tap into external markets, as the company's investor base boasts an incredible strength and breadth of its own."

With this latest round of finance now in place, OB10 will have the financial resources to grow the business rapidly and across multiple geographies. This latest investment will be used exclusively to fund further growth enablement. This significant level of investment will allow OB10 to maintained considerable financial headroom compared to its projected plans, enabling the Company to grow very quickly as the market for its services expands.