Osborne Clarke’s emerging companies and venture capital practice partners with founders, investors, high growth companies and spin-outs, from incorporation through to exit. We are known for delivering responsive, pragmatic and sector-specific advice on venture capital, growth equity and strategic transactions across Europe and beyond.
Flock
Osborne Clarke has worked with insurance technology company Flock since 2017, when it was a start-up emerging from Ordnance Survey's Geovation Accelerator Programme. Initially focused on the 'pay as you fly' drone insurance market, Flock launched the world's first 'pay as you fly' drone insurance app by using real-time data. We supported them through their £2.25 million seed funding round in 2018, led by fintech and insurtech focussed VC Anthemis.
From there our relationship has developed alongside Flock's own expansion as it moved into real-time insurance for commercial motor fleets. We supported on Flock's $17 million Series A fundraising round led by Social Capital, a leading Californian investment firm run by Chamath Palihapitiya, renowned tech investor, Chairman of Virgin Galactic, and an early backer of Slack and Tesla. This funding round helped Flock supercharge its expansion into new geographies and product lines, marking a major milestone in building a global, fully digital insurance company for connected and autonomous vehicles.
We then went on to advise Flock on a $38M series B fundraising round led by Octopus Ventures, one of the largest and most active venture capital investors in Europe. This funding round also included participation from specialist fintech and insurtech VC, CommerzVentures, as well as Flock's existing institutional investors Social Capital, Dig Ventures, VC Anthemis, and Foresight Ventures.
Most recently we advised Flock on its £80m acquisition by Admiral Group, one of the UK's leading motor insurers. The transaction is one of the largest ever UK insurtech acquisitions, following which Flock will become Admiral’s telemetry‑driven fleet insurance proposition, with its AI‑powered platform and specialist team forming a key part of Admiral’s commercial motor offering.
Osborne Clarke has supported across the full spectrum of Flock's legal needs, from fundraisings and employee share option arrangements, through company secretarial services, to commercial contracts and employment agreements. Osborne Clarke works with a number of innovative businesses looking to explore and harness value from innovative technology, including mobilitytech and insurtech, and Flock is a great example of these being brought together with great success.
“I cannot express how fortunate I have been to work with James Taylor, and the entire OC team, for the best part of a decade. I regard James not simply as external counsel, but as a critical member of my own team. He has supported me through some of the most challenging, complex and consequential moments in Flock’s history, providing expert judgement and calm leadership when it mattered most. What differentiates James and the OC team is not only technical strength, but commercial instinct and judgement under pressure. James knows when to push and when to hold ground, and was trusted by my counterparties and advisers alike. He anticipates issues before they arise and addresses them in a pragmatic, proportionate manner. I value his opinion deeply across legal, commercial and strategic matters, and I would recommend him without hesitation to anyone facing high-stakes or complex transactions. ”
Ed Leon Klinger, CEO, Flock
Nexeon
Osborne Clarke advised leading battery materials developer and manufacturer, Nexeon, through two successful multi-million pound fundraising rounds. Nexeon produces silicon anodes which are a crucial component in lithium-ion electric vehicle batteries, boosting vehicle range, charging speed and lower charging costs. The company is headquartered in South Oxfordshire with operations also in Yokohama, Japan, and Gunsan, South Korea.
Nexeon received a $80 million investment from SKC in 2022. SKC is one of South Korea's leading advanced materials companies, with a strategic focus on rechargeable battery, semiconductor and eco-friendly materials. The fundraising and formation of a manufacturing partnership were part of Nexeon’s manufacturing strategy to accelerate the supply of its silicon anode materials at volume in order to meet the rapidly increasing demands from its blue-chip customers in automotive and consumer electronics industries across Europe, North America and Asia. The investment confirmed Nexeon’s position in the market and allowed the company to deliver on its manufacturing and commercialisation strategy.
The second close of Nexeon’s fundraising made an overall total investment of $170 million and a further $50 million of commercial investments made in its technologies. The investors included US-based Ingevity Corporation, GLY Mobility Fund, and Korean private equity investors Daishin Private Equity and Shinhan Investments. The capital was raised by Nexeon to accelerate the expansion of its manufacturing capabilities in order to mass produce tens of thousands of metric tonnes per annum of its silicon-based anode materials.
The Osborne Clarke team has acted on behalf of Nexeon since its incorporation in 2006 and worked with its management team on multiple refinancings and commercial arrangements.
N26
Osborne Clarke advised N26, a German direct bank, in a billion-dollar funding round with a group of top investors. Based in Berlin, N26 specialises in account management via smartphone, and as a direct bank, it offers a current account that can be opened and managed entirely via smartphone app. The bank offers real-time banking, meaning that all transactions can be viewed within seconds in the app and are displayed to the customer via push notifications.
We advised N26 in a financing round with investors including Third Point, Coatue and Dragoneer for approximately EUR 700,000,000 based on a valuation of approximately EUR 8 billion. Coatue is a billion-dollar fund of Philippe Laffont, who is also involved in the start-up Gorillas. Third Point was founded by Daniel Loeb and is invested, for example, in the super app Grab or the lending platform Upstart. The fund Dragoneer is one of the early Spotify investors. The Osborne Clarke team supported N26 throughout the financing with their legal expertise in venture capital, corporate and finance.
The Osborne Clarke team advising N26, led by Nicolas Gabrysch and Till-Manuel Saur (Corporate/VC), consisted of Antje Günther, Reinhard Bunjes and Olexiy Oleshschuk (Finance), Philip Meichssner, Natalie Merkle and Susanne Kühltau (all Corporate), Philipp Niedermeyer, Fabian Mimberg, Robert Marx and Carina Harksen (Corporate/VC).
Zihipp
Osborne Clarke advised Zihipp, a biotech start-up developing a library of gut hormone peptides for the treatment of obesity and diabetes, from its original spin-out from Imperial College, London in 2012 through its Series A funding by Mubadala Investment Company in 2020, an international collaboration/joint venture deal with EOFlow in 2021 and on to its sale to Metsera, Inc in 2024. Metsera is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a portfolio of weight loss drugs targeting the $100 billion anti-obesity drugs market that was sold to Pfizer in 2025 for up to $10 billion. and Zihipp was developing a library of gut hormone peptides. The sale enabled the companies to combine their expertise and develop their technologies for commercial use.
Osborne Clarke supported Zihipp on its growth journey from incorporation to exit, covering investment and exit transactions, as well as advice on commercial, share incentives, tax and other legal specialisms where an in depth knowledge of the requirements of emerging companies is key.
"Osborne Clarke's team provided us with excellent advice throughout the transaction, characterised by the usual pragmatic and commercial approach we have come to expect.”
Dunstan Cooke, Vice President Corporate Operations at Metsera
