The London-based ad tech formerly known as Ve Interactive has announced a rebrand to Ve Global at dmexco, alongside news of a £15 million investment. 

The cash injection, which comes from existing shareholders, will add further stability to the former ‘unicorn’, following its market value plummeting at the end of Q1 to less than a quarter of its previously lofty £1.5 million price tag.  

Those shareholders – a consortium including MyVoucherCodes founder Mark Pearson and Aston Ventures’ Doug Barrowman – rescued Ve from the brink of administration in May with a last-minute management buyout which saw the installation of current CEO Morten Tonnesen. 

On plans for today’s investment announcement, Ve’s COO, David Marrinan-Hayes, said that the majority will go into product development and growth of market share through further investment into customer acquisition and retention marketing. 

That will include developing its presence in the United States and advancing into new territories including China and India, enriching its product stack and tactical hires. 

“Fresh start”

Speaking from Ve Global’s stand at dmexco in Cologne, Tonnesen said the rebrand “isn’t simply an update to our visual identity; it reinforces our belief in knowing what is next for our clients, and that means turning the data we collect into insight and providing our clients’ customers with that tailored and intuitive online experience they deserve.”

Asked whether the rebrand could be perceived as a “fresh start” following a turbulent H1, Marrinan-Hayes told PerformanceIN, “Yes, but it is just the most visual part of a comprehensive reinvigoration of the company which has been taking place since May.”

Marrinan-Hayes reaffirmed that Ve is “100% focused” on its original core offering of using consumer data insights to build the best solutions to help our customers acquire, engage and convert more customers more cost effectively, and achieving its vision of “understanding the value of a single action”.

On Ve’s current bill of health and staff count following assurances earlier in the year to safeguard “hundreds” of jobs amid rigorous cutbacks, Marrinan-Hayes said only that the latest funding was “sufficient” to help management and staff fulfill its company vision.

“The business continues to hire new roles to help support its commercial and development strategy as needed,” he added. 

Founded in 2009, Ve started life developing basket recovery email tech, since developing a full-funnel proposition that fights onsite abandonment “attracting the audience with the right message at the right time”.