Bibliotech passes $4.2m test

Bibliotech, a UK-based digital textbook library service co-founded by a University of Oxford alumnus, has obtained $4.2m in a round backed by university venture fund Oxford Sciences Innovation and its co-investment vehicle University of Oxford Innovation Fund (UOIF).
The transaction was led by the family office of Paul Forster and also featured private investor Fritz Demopoulos. UOIF is managed on the university’s behalf by Parkwalk Advisors, the fund management arm of commercialisation firm IP Group.
The round was first reported in June this year, but at the time the figure was put at $4m and only UOIF, Forster and Demopoulos were identified as backers.
Founded in 2014, Bibliotech runs an academic e-book library that provides students with access to texts from more than 2,000 publishers.
The company has distribution agreements in operation with more than 20 academic institutions, however students can also access the service directly by paying a monthly fee.
Cash from the round will fund the maintenance of Bibliotech’s offices in London and Chicago as well as efforts aligned with its growth strategy.
Bibliotech was incubated by University of Oxford’s tech transfer office, Oxford University Innovation. It received £290,000 ($365,000 at today’s exchange rate) from unnamed investors at an unspecified date, before OSI joined UOIF for a round of undisclosed size for the company in April 2017.