London Board & Investor Dinner 2025
Our annual London Board & Investor Dinner brought together an incredible group of investors, CEOs, CFOs and Board Members from PLCs through to VC and PE-backed businesses to share insights and build long-lasting relationships.
On Tuesday night, we hosted our 11th annual London Board & Investor Dinner, bringing together 400 Chairs, NEDs, CEOs, CFOs and Investors from across Europe’s dynamic tech ecosystem.
Our evening featured two exceptional speakers: Sujata Bhatia, COO at Monzo Bank and Greg Jackson, CEO & Founder at Octopus Energy. Sujata delivered an insightful talk on Monzo’s rapid scaling journey, highlighting key intentional strategies to sustain growth, the challenges of peacetime scaling, and the importance of avoiding common pitfalls like over-processing, excessive management layers, and misplaced reliance on hiring. Following Sujata, Greg's speech emphasised the importance of agility, innovation, and empowering employees in business and how a company can scale rapidly while maintaining high customer satisfaction and workplace culture. He also highlighted the transformative power of AI, the need for businesses to adapt to rapid technological change, and the urgency for Western companies to invest more in research and development to remain competitive.
A huge thank you to Greg and Sujata for their inspiring contributions and for sparking meaningful conversations about leadership, ambition, and the future of tech.
We are pleased that our guests had an amazing experience at the event. Here’s what they had to say:
“Wow, an amazing event! Great turnout! I was impressed by your network to see the top investors, entrepreneurs and NEDs in London. I enjoyed your remarks and those of your speakers. Very insightful! You can take great pride in all that you have accomplished. One of the best events I have attended in London!”
“It is nothing but impressive what you and your team have put together. Thank YOU for an outstanding event at this beautiful location. Everything was planned in detail, and I thank you for a great dinner table seating. I am proud and happy to witness how you have grown the network and the company so successfully over the last few years. Thank you again for this wonderful event and the invite. Truly something special.”
“I wanted to say a big thank you for another excellent evening. I really enjoy your dinners which bring together so many interesting people. I love reconnecting with friends that I always think I should see more often, and also forging new connections and hearing their stories. So a huge thank you for bringing together such a great community. I imagine it must take up so much thought, planning and time. And I am sure it is not a coincidence that some people were placed together. Congratulations on a great event, again.”
“A HUGE THANK YOU for the incredible event, dinner, keynotes and hospitality. You really do know how to get some serious people together in a room and create magic and connectivity. I met some great people, only regret I couldn't get around to meet more. Bravo!”
“Such a brilliant event last night as ever. Great crowd and really enjoyed the speakers too. Thank you, thank you!”
“Congratulations to you and the team on another excellent event last night! The convening power of the Up Group is always so impressive.”
“Great night last night as always - superbly organised, great speakers and a lovely crowd.
Thanks again and hope you got a good night's sleep after that!”
“You certainly know how to host an industry dinner! Thank you so much for an inspirational evening in a wonderful setting. Greg was dynamite. you must be incredibly proud of the business you’ve managed to build. I think you own the sector! Congratulations.”
“Thank you so much for hosting such another wonderful event last night. As usual, I met many interesting people and made some really great connections. Many thanks again! I feel lucky to be in the Up Group orbit!”
“Thank you for having me. A great pleasure as always”
“Lovely evening with some great, concise and insightful speakers.”
“A quick note to say a big thank you for a fab evening last night. Brilliant venue, fab catering and most importantly. A fantastic group of inspiring people. Thank you for having invited me!”
“Thank you for an incredible evening of inspiring speakers, invaluable networking and delicious food !”
“I just wanted to say a huge thank you for a great event last night. Great conversations, interesting people, fantastic speakers, and delicious food. What more could anyone want - except world peace, of course!”
“Thanks very much for the invitation to yesterday's event. It was really excellent. I re-connected with some great people from previous jobs and met some interesting new people too. Plus the food was great!”
“Thanks for the fantastic dinner last night. Great speakers and great company.”
“A very enjoyable evening with a very nice group of people. Thank you for doing it and for inviting me. It is impressive indeed to get such a group together.”
“Thank you so much for a wonderful event - it was my first time and I was thrilled to be in the room with such an amazing group. These things take so much care, time and effort to put together and I'm really grateful for the investment.”
“Thanks for inviting me! It was great as usual. The two speakers were absolutely brilliant”
“A huge thank you from me to you! It was a fantastic event, so well thought through, great speakers! And I was humbled to be included.”
“Thank you for including me in this event. It was a fantastic opportunity to hear great speakers and connect with a group of incredibly talented professionals. I will fill out the survey, but wanted you to know that it is really one of the best events of this type I have ever attended.”
“Another fantastic event. Thanks again as ever.”
“Thank you for the invite. It was such a fun evening. So many interesting discussions and an incredible guest list and very entertaining guest speakers. I can only imagine the logistics of organising such a large event! I look forward to attending future events.”
“I absolutely enjoyed the dinner. I had a very good table with some of our future, I hope, partners. I’ve also met a friend I haven’t seen in a while.”
“What a fabulous evening! Seriously impressive stuff. Thank you. Hugely impressed by what you’ve built, and thoroughly enjoyed both the networking and the speakers – genuinely helpful insight.”
“Thank you so much for organizing this great event, and thank you for having me. It was a fantastic evening with lots of good conversations.”
“Thank you for the invitation. This was such a fantastic event! The speakers were very interesting and this was a great networking opportunity.”
“Great event! Well done. Amazing to see what you have achieved, remembering those early days when you started - the whole ecosystem fitted into a small office! Thank you again for the kind invite.”
“Many thanks for the invite to last night’s dinner. Was fabulous , you have set a high bar for yourself. Loved the speakers and really enjoyed meeting the people on our table.”
“Thank you for including me last night – it was a wonderful event!”
“This was a fantastic event. I met some great people who I didn’t know. I don’t think we have done much with you guys in our buyout group? Would love to catch up and learn more and I can share a bit about us in tech.”
“Thank you! What a brilliant event, met some great people and totally inspired by the two speakers.”
“Thank you for kindly inviting me - it was a lovely evening.”
“An absolutely wonderful evening AGAIN. You continue to break glass ceilings. Thank you for having me.”
“An absolutely fantastic evening, another triumph! Thank you so much for having me.”
“Fantastic to see you briefly last night and what a brilliant dinner. Thank you again. Thoroughly enjoyed it, as always. Had some great conversations and re-made a number of old connections. Loved your welcome speech btw. Brilliantly authentic.”
“Hope all is well! Congratulations on yesterday’s diner! It was amazing! Its impressive what you have done, gathering so many great people in a same room was fantastic”
“Thank you SO much for inviting me. Thoroughly enjoyed and super grateful to be included. Stunning venue and event!”
“Thank you for another wonderful event!”
“It’s been a true pleasure - wanted to THANK YOU for the invite and the excellent event that you put together - I have enjoyed it very much and think it has been one of the best I have been to in the last 12 months.”
“Thank you Up Group team! Really enjoyed the event. Both speakers were compelling, and I made some interesting new contacts. As a bonus the food was good too!”
“Another great event from Up - thanks for the invitation and great to attend for the first time as a happy customer.”
“Quick note to say thank you for the invite – a very impressive event and I thoroughly enjoyed the evening, the networking and the speakers! Congratulations!”
“Thank you all for a really outstanding event last night. To gather a group of that size and calibre is really astonishing. It truly is the Olympics of the UK digital industry calendar. I had a couple of proper, deep, engaging conversations at my table - and even got my gas supply problems sorted by Greg. Who could ask for more?”
“As ever a brilliant event yesterday evening so once again thank you for the invite. Loved the speeches and company - an event where everyone is always more relaxed and happy than at any other event and that is the magic of your hosting!”
“It was a terrific event again - thank you!”
“Thanks for the invite. Great evening – really enjoyed the speakers.”
“Really enjoyable – thank you for having me. Probably the best collection of people at an event that I’ve been to, to be honest. Really impressive list – but that’s unsurprising based on my experience of working with you and your business.”
“Great event as usual, ie great venue, great organization, great people, great food, great atmosphere, great speakers. Thank you for the invitation. I had a very good time next to James and other fellows VCs!”
“Another spectacular event! I’m blown away by what you’ve built. When the history of the tech ecosystem is written, you and the Up group will be seen as one of the major pillars.”
“Thank you so much for having me – I had SUCH fun and the speakers and guests were brilliant, as usual.”
“A thoroughly enjoyable evening as ever. Great speakers, very different, but bonded with incredible hair and great shoes.”
“Thank you for the brilliant evening and great speakers - loved it!”
“Thank you so much for inviting me to last night's dinner. It was a fantastic event. Both speakers were exceptional, and I particularly found it helpful how they shared their companies' journeys and their tips for success. It was also a pleasure to connect with many of the impressive attendees.”
“Thanks for such a lovely evening. Great curation of smart and experienced people! I truly appreciate joining such a powerful group.”
“Thank you for the invitation. It was a lovely and inspiring event!”
“Thanks for a very fun and insightful dinner. Bravo on the flawless execution.”
“Brilliant, as ever! Thank you.”
“Thanks so much for welcoming me again to your magnificent evening. I loved the two speakers - couldn’t have been more different - in so many ways. Both excellent and have got me thinking about a few things!”
“Thank you so much for the delightful evening last night. I caught up with many colleagues, friends, investors and people from my ecosystem.”
“Thanks for your email and for a wonderful evening yesterday. The quality of the guest list was absolutely outstanding and made for really useful networking. Two excellent speakers too! Thank you so much for including me in such a prestigious event! WOW – totally awed by the number and quality of attendees so was a fab night, loved the speakers to.”
“Many thanks to you and the team for an excellent event. It's quite a feat to get such a large AND high quality group together - well done! A highlight were the inspiring talks which brought so much energy to the room.”
“I wanted to thank you for last night, it was a wonderful evening.”
“What a great event and a remarkable group of people. Thanks for putting it on!”
“Many thanks for the invitation, really enjoyed it and great speakers in Greg and Sujata!”
“Thank you very much for this wonderfully organized dinner. Quite an impressive crowd! I had a good time and was able to catch up with three professionals I had met in the past.”
“Thanks so much to you and team Up Group for a fantastic, fun evening and a chance to catch up with old colleagues, friends and meet new interesting people. A real joy to be part of it and thank you for including me.”
“Best one ever! I was totally blown away, which is something.”
“Thanks so much for a lovely evening.”
“Thank you sooo much for the most fabulous evening! I met people I already know but haven't seen for ages.....brand new people I have wanted to meet and never had the opportunity, and a whole bunch of people I didn't know I needed to meet! A fabulous location and the most generous hospitality in every way. Thank you so much and congratulations on staging such a successful event which I know everyone loved.”
“Thanks so much for a fab evening yesterday - I’m so impressed by the events you put on, the guests I spoke to were super interesting (both old colleagues and new acquaintances), and the speeches were inspiring.”
“It was a fantastic dinner as always. Thank you so much for the invitation and organising it. In particular, I really enjoyed both of the speakers, they were inspiring, funny, and I loved that they gave practical, actionable advice from their experience. I also enjoyed that they had slightly different perspectives on things. I thought that was enriching.”
“What an absolute crackerjack of an evening. Really loved it. Inspiring talks, great food, so many amazing people. I was on a splendidly curated table so thank you.”
“Thanks so much for organising the wonderful event yesterday. The list of attendees, the speakers, the venue... Everything was absolutely impressive!”
“Thanks a lot for having me and nice meeting you in person. Fantastically organized, high-quality event! A lot of good meetings and networking. Unfortunately managed to tap maybe only 5% of the audience.”
“What a fabulous evening! I saw lots of people I knew and met some great new people too. Thank you for inviting me.”
“What a triumph of organisation. Your event is clearly the premier event in the sector.”
“Many thanks for an excellent evening on Tuesday. I enjoyed the conversation at our table, but also the opportunity to reconnect with so many folks I haven’t spoken to in ages, as well as to make some new connections. Well done to you for pulling it all together and making it run so smoothly.”
“Thanks for the invite and an enjoyable evening. It just keeps going bigger and bigger each year, credit to you.”
“Thank you so much for dinner on Tuesday night. Fabulous location, great food, fantastic company and the speeches were inspiring.”
“Another masterclass in how to bring together a good slice of the uk tech scene! Greg is especially inspiring, but also lots of great conversations around the room.”
“Just a note to thank you so much for a wonderful evening last night. It really is the most extraordinary group of people that you manage to convene every year, and it was great to see old friends and make some new connections. Thanks again for the tremendous service you do for the ecosystem by hosting.”
“What a fabulous evening! I can’t remember going to an event with more entertaining and insightful speakers. I met some great folk on the table and beyond. It was lovely to see you all and congratulations on hosting such an enjoyable evening. Many thanks for having me along.”
“Thanks very much for another enjoyable evening.”
“Thank you for curating such a wonderful food tech table and brilliant speakers for the event. Thank you for orchestrating this opportunity for business to come together - never more critical than now as we carve our path forward to create a growing, resilient and exciting business community in the UK.”
“I just wanted to say thank you very much indeed for such an enjoyable evening last night! It is the first time I have joined the dinner and through a thoughtful table plan, met some very interesting investors.”
“I just wanted to drop a note of thanks for last night. What an amazing gathering of talented people. You should be immensely proud of what you have built, massive kudos to you.”
“Thank you very much for having me at your event, as ever, I enjoyed it very much.”
“Thank you very much for hosting such a fantastic evening: these are getting better each year! The two speakers were very different but equally engaging, a difficult balance to pull off.”
“As ever - always great to meet some interesting people and catch up with old friends. Long may you keep doing it.”
“A huge thank you again for the event last night. I made many new connections - and also bumped into lots of people I love to learn with/from. The speakers were especially good; a wonderful mix of styles, ideas and lessons learned!”
“Another cracker! Thank you so much for a brilliant night last night. It really is the most extraordinary event and there’s always a very genuine conviviality and openness amongst the guests that makes it a wonderful occasion. Thank you. Sujata and Greg are both so good… really loved it.”
“That was an impressive gathering last night. I really enjoyed my table and found we had connections beyond work. It was clear how much thought you put into planning the evening. Thank you for inviting me.”
“Thank you for an amazing dinner on Tuesday. Great to chat with so many old and new faces. A really great evening, and superb speakers.”
“Thanks again for a wonderful evening. It was great to see the team again and meet with/reconnect with some fantastic people!”
