25a6bc0a-277f-3e26-a35a-a71c9ed1cd8bUK founders looking to start and scale a company may soon have a more efficient route to both capital and customers, following an expansion of Barclays’ Demo Directory platform. In just two years, Demo Directory has facilitated more than £1.67bn in capital requests, with 9.1% of all UK companies that raised capital in 2024 using the platform. Barclays’ latest update builds on that momentum by addressing a growing founder demand: access to markets, not just money. “The new functionality we brought into the platform is all about how we help early-stage founders access potential sales routes,” Story said. “At the same time, we help corporate businesses access groundbreaking innovation that could transform their business.”Previously, Demo Directory focused primarily on capital access.