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British Tech Start-Up Signals Moulton Backing

A British technology company which is targeting the dominance of ‘old media’ information platforms will disclose on Wednesday that it has raised a new round of funding from backers including Jon Moulton, the veteran venture capitalist.

Sky News understands that Signal, which was launched in 2012 by David Benigson, will announce that it has attracted $1.8m in fresh investment as a springboard to accelerate its expansion.

Signal’s new shareholders will include Mr Moulton, who is understood to be investing through his family office; Robin Klein, a leading figure in London’s technology investment industry; Reed Elsevier Ventures, an arm of the FTSE-100 business information giant; and Darren Shapland, the chairman of discount retailer Poundworld.

It will be the first investment disclosed involving Mr Moulton since a new row erupted about the treatment of parcel delivery firm City Link, which was put into administration on Christmas Eve.

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City Link was owned by Better Capital, the private equity firm Mr Moulton founded and runs.

In a letter to MPs, the former Alchemy boss said that they had failed to properly understand the insolvency process and accused them of making “hurtful and unjust” allegations.

“ We appreciate that you operate outside the judicial framework but are dismayed that you chose to operate outside the normal rules of natural justice”, he wrote.

Signal’s funding round is being spearheaded by Frontline Ventures, a Dublin-based firm.

The company specialises in providing media monitoring and business intelligence to clients, and was set up with expertise from specialists in areas such as data and text analytics to improve the speed and accuracy of search results.

It claims to scour more than 75,000 news outlets, 3.5m blogs and 100 social networks, enabling Signal’s users to access, analyse and monitor real-time information.

Russell Levi, a former Bloomberg executive, is joining Signal as part of its senior management team.

Signal is expected to say that its fundraising will allow it to mount a swifter challenge to information sources such as Factiva, which is owned by Dow Jones, and LexisNexis, a subsidiary of Reed Elsevier (LSE: REL.L - news) .

The investment from Mr Moulton will be one of a string made recently by Perscitus Advisers, a private vehicle which manages his family’s wealth and is run by his son, Spencer.