Mr Cunningham set up MatchPoint in 1992, expanding its corporate hospitality offering from the UK to include clients as far afield as Hong Kong and Sydney, and recently sold his stake. He has invested in, and been a director of, various start-ups, joint ventures and special purpose vehicles in the hospitality and sports industries in the UK, Middle East, Asia, and Australia.

An investor in Archangels for more than 15 years, Cunningham’s appointment to the board comes as the Edinburgh-based syndicate celebrates its 30^th year. Chaired by Ian Macleod, other Archangels board members include Tim Allan, Maureen Kinsler, Mike MacPhee and Andrew Sealey. 

Ian Macleod, chair of the Archangels board, said: “Having founded, grown and successfully exited a highly valuable Scottish business, Neil is an excellent addition to the Archangels board of directors. Neil brings a great deal of international experience and market expertise, which will be invaluable as Archangels continues to support and promote innovative Scottish businesses and generate real value for our investors and the wider Scottish economy.”

Mr Cunningham added: “In the 15 years that I’ve been a member of the Archangels community, I’ve witnessed first-hand the value of angel investing to supporting ambitious early-stage businesses. It’s an honour to help steer that support from the Board and to play my role in the next chapter of Archangels’ story.”

Archangels aims to deliver returns for its investors while harnessing their experience and networks to fuel the success of Scotland’s entrepreneurs and innovators in technology and life sciences. The syndicate currently has around 120 members invested in a portfolio of 20 early-stage companies.

Research commissioned to coincide with Archangels’ 30^th anniversary found that every £1 invested generated between £7.11 and £8.45 for the Scottish economy. It also found that Archangels has generated up to £1.4 billion Gross Value Added (GVA) for the Scottish economy from its investments in the life sciences and tech sectors.

Archangels’ current portfolio is worth an estimated £211.29m and supports more than 755 jobs.