2sms, a Milton Keynes-based provider of text messaging services to businesses, has secured £450,000 in venture capital (VC) to expand its business in the US. The funding comes from regional VC fund The Capital Fund which contributed £250,000 and private investor Richard Goldstein who has joined the company’s board.

2sms, which has 1,500 customers in the UK, says it plans to develop a ‘significant’ customer base in the US, working with a ‘leading distributor’.

CEO Tim King said: ‘We’ll be using the funds to grow our US operations, expand our sales support team and continue to upgrade our systems and servers to cope with the rapidly increasing traffic levels we’re experiencing.’

2sms was founded in 1996 and began trading in 2000. Its services allow businesses to contact staff and customers by mobile phone text message. Data is encrypted and alerts can be sent to individuals or groups.

The Capital Fund is one of nine regional VC funds backed partly by public money and managed by the private sector. It was launched in 2002 with funds of £50 million and makes investments of up to £250,000 in companies based in Greater London.