£18,500 Invested On The Spot As UK's Top Ten Student Founders Pitch At Revolut HQ

£18,500 invested on the spot as UNiDAYS, StudentVenture, and Canopy Community crown the UK's top student founders at Revolut HQ.

Ten finalists from across the UK pitched for £100,000 of investment at the culmination of the UK's largest student startup accelerator programme

London, 27th May 2026 — StudentVenture, UNiDAYS, and Canopy Community hosted the grand finale of the UK's largest student startup accelerator programme at Revolut HQ, Canary Wharf, London. Ten student founders — selected from over 100 applicants drawn from 80 universities spanning nearly every academic discipline — pitched their businesses live in front of a panel of investors and industry leaders, including entrepreneur and investor Simon Squibb.

Simon Squibb invested £18,500 across two companies: £10,000 into One Million Opportunities (OMO), a platform connecting students with real work experience, founded by Hussnain Khan, Bilal Ahmed, and Mansoor Saad of the University of Liverpool; and £8,500 into okino, a done-for-you events service turning online communities into real-world connections, founded by Mara James of the London Interdisciplinary School. Simon also committed to helping Okino run its first event.

The People's Choice Award — voted for by the live audience — was awarded to Oscar Heaney of Far From, a work-for-accommodation travel platform connecting travellers with UK hosts for immersive volunteering experiences.

The event was watched by thousands of people live across TikTok and Instagram, with the energy in the room matched by the response online.

About the programme

Launched in November 2025, the StudentVenture x UNiDAYS x Canopy Community Student Startup Accelerator was built on a single belief: that opportunity should be available to every student, regardless of background, network, or financial means.

With graduate unemployment at its worst level in a generation, the programme set out to give the next generation of founders the tools, mentorship, and community to turn ideas into real businesses.

Over six weeks, 100 founders received structured mentorship, guided content, 1-1 support, investor readiness sessions, and pitch coaching. Ten were selected as finalists to pitch at Revolut HQ on 27th May.

The ten finalists and their ventures were:

• Hussnain Khan, Bilal Ahmed, Mansoor Saad — One Million Opportunities (OMO) — University of Liverpool

• Abraham Orherhe — tPay365 — City, University of London

• Sebastian Kot — LQG — City St George's, University of London

• Natalie Mbonjani — PalmPro — University of Reading

• Amaan Khan — Aspire — University of Warwick

• Natalie Weir — Playivity — University of Derby

• Amelia Vincent — Middle — University of Lincoln

• Mara James — Okino — London Interdisciplinary School

• Mark Edwards — SLVR — Bayes Business School, London

• Oscar Heaney — Far From — University of East Anglia

  
  

What the founders said

"The UNiDAYS Accelerate programme is one of the best things that could have happened for Aspire. The structure, mentorship and guidance was second to none and provided us everything we needed to make Aspire successful." — Amaan Khan, Founder, Aspire

"The programme provided me with an opportunity unlike anything I have done before, giving me the chance to connect with other founders, mentors and experts, whilst creating an environment where everyone wanted to help each other." — Oscar Heaney, Co-Founder, Far From — People's Choice Award Winner

"I've been through several accelerators and incubators, and the deep sense of community and willingness to help others was simply unparalleled." — Mark Edwards, Founder & CEO, SLVR

What the organisers said

"Throughout this programme, it's been incredible to see the ambition and creativity from student founders across the UK. From healthcare innovation and affordable travel to financial literacy programmes, the ideas we've seen showcase the best of Britain's entrepreneurial spirit. We're incredibly proud to be working with StudentVenture and Canopy Community on this initiative." — Josh Rathour, Founder, UNiDAYS

"With graduate career paths becoming more competitive than ever, young people are increasingly forging their own futures through entrepreneurship. Our mission was to democratise access to opportunity and the founder ecosystem, and the talent, ambition and quality of businesses that came through the programme exceeded all expectations." — Alex Smith, Global Lead, Earning and Learning at UNiDAYS

"The Student Accelerator shows just how important confidence and support are for young founders. Since we opened applications in November, it has been amazing to see the range of businesses young people are pursuing today, and the drive they have to succeed." — Stewart Noakes, Chair of the Board, Canopy Community

"The level of passion and commitment shown by every student in this initiative has been truly impressive. At StudentVenture, we're focused on helping students turn ideas into action — and the ten finalists are a reflection of the hard work which goes into this journey." — Liam Jeffery, Founder & CEO, StudentVenture

Join the waiting list for cohort II: https://www.studentventure.io/accelerator2026

Media enquiries: StudentVenture — company@studentventure.io