Watson Burton advises on international tech investment deal

Newcastle-based Watson Burton has advised artificial intelligence (AI) company GoodVision Ltd on a major restructure and investment.

Watson Burton was instructed by GoodVision to advise on the completion of a share-for-share exchange to enable the company to receive €500,000 investment from Bulgarian investor Neo Ventures KDA, the 2018 Alternative Investment Awards winner.

GoodVision was founded in 2017, in Prague, with the mission to prevent traffic issues such as congestion, increase road safety, support urban design and to achieve sustainable mobility on the road, all key factors behind the development of smarter cities.

GoodVision provides the fastest and the most reliable artificial intelligence solution that fully automates city traffic analytics, a crucial step within the traffic engineering process.

GoodVision’s product “Video Insights” combines the capabilities of a wide variety of traffic sensors into a single tool, automating the human processes behind data collection and analysis, providing reliable traffic insights for traffic engineers, surveyors and traffic modellers.

Daniel Stofan, an experienced C-level manager and serial tech-entrepreneur Lukas Hruby instructed Watson Burton to complete a share-for-share exchange with GoodVision and its Czech subsidiary prior to receipt of Neo Ventures’ investment.

Watson Burton has considerable experience in corporate transactions and drew on its expertise in major international investments to help the deal reach a successful outcome.

The UK is now established as the primary business home of GoodVision, with the Prague office used as its development centre.

The funding from Neo Ventures has enabled the company to continue its growth, with investment being channelled into growing the sales support team in the London office and supporting the partners and reseller network in Western Europe. Watson Burton provided close support to GoodVision throughout the investment process.

Daniel Stofan co-founder of GoodVision, commented: “Watson Burton managed the deal very well, thus we felt the whole process was really straightforward – we had complete trust and confidence in their abilities. They were supportive and informative, and almost like a part of our team.

“We recognised the UK as a healthy and well developed market that holds strategic importance for commercial companies, traffic engineers and traffic surveyors looking for reliable solution for traffic analytics.

“We’re delighted to have been able to receive Neo Ventures’ trust and funding, which is enabling us to focus on growing our user base.”

Paul Wigham, partner at Watson Burton commented: “It has been fantastic for Watson Burton to advise on this deal because it was an international investment into a UK company, which has roots in the Czech Republic and with the funding being provided by a Bulgarian firm.

“We have previously acted on behalf of the investor company, Neo Ventures KDA, so we were aware that they are founder-friendly investors and as such, negotiations were managed quickly and efficiently with all parties geared up for a successful outcome.

“It’s a great achievement for Daniel and Lukas to have taken their business through this first investment round and we look forward to working with them and supporting them with future growth plans.”